College Viability Inspection Report

Stephen F Austin State University

Texas · Public

Stephen F Austin State University is a public institution in Texas, enrolling 8,339 students as of 2024. It graduates 36% of students in four years, returns 72% of freshmen for a second year, and costs an average of $14,959 a year after grants and scholarships. Of the 9 inspection checks that could be evaluated, 5 are flagged: Retention, Graduation, Equity Gap, Revenue to Expenses, and Enrollment. This report benchmarks Stephen F Austin State University's most recent reported year (2024) against 2,000+ U.S. colleges across three dimensions: student outcomes, financial health, and value for money. All figures are drawn from federal IPEDS filings and are reported without editorial judgment.

Stephen F Austin State University Inspection Flags

Student Outcomes
Financial Health
Value for Your Money

Inspection flags are nine independent checks across student outcomes, financial health, and cost-to-value that surface areas of a college's reported numbers worth a closer look. A triggered flag means the college's data met a specific threshold that students and families may want to ask about — for example, graduation rates slipping below a level, or tuition rising while outcomes decline. A clear flag means the threshold was not met. Flags are signals for further conversation, not verdicts.

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College Viability
Data Summary

Stephen F Austin State University — All Reported Indicators

Plain-text reference table of every metric and inspection flag for Stephen F Austin State University. Values reflect IPEDS-reported figures; percent changes reflect endpoint-to-endpoint 2020 → 2024 comparison; percentiles reflect 2024 national rank against four-year public and private nonprofit institutions. Cells marked "not reported" indicate the indicator was not present in IPEDS for this institution.

Student Outcomes

Metric2024 Value5-Yr % ChangeNational Percentile
Four-Year Graduation Rate36.0%+20.0%43rd
Six-Year Graduation Rate53.0%+10.4%46th
Full-Time Retention Rate72.0%-6.5%36th
Pell Grant Six-Year Graduation Rate47.3%-1.4%49th
Pell-to-Non-Pell Graduation Gap10.2pp+2.1%55th
Pell Share of Cohort40.6%-5.4%55th

Financial Health

Metric2024 Value5-Yr % ChangeNational Percentile
Revenue-to-Expense Ratio2.10×+124.3%99th
Total FTE Enrollment8,339-15.9%87th
Endowment Value$135.4M+31.3%71st
Net Assets (End of Year)$471.3M+672.5%82nd

Value for Money

Metric2024 Value5-Yr % ChangeNational Percentile
Instructional Spending %34.9%+9.3%57th
Student Support Spending %5.9%-44.1%18th
Administrative Spending %17.5%+20.3%47th
Instruction+Support to Admin Ratio2.33×-20.2%38th
Average Net Price$14,959+18.3%33rd
Net Price: $0-30K Income$10,318+15.2%30th
Net Price: $30K-48K Income$11,023+4.4%32nd
Net Price: $48-75K Income$13,100-0.7%31st
Net Price: $75K-110K Income$17,609+1.5%35th
Net Price: $110K+ Income$22,959+11.5%40th

Inspection Flags

FlagSectionStatus
Retention Below 80%
Stephen F Austin State University's retention rate fell below 80% in 5 of 5 reported years — triggering the 3-of-5 threshold.
Student OutcomesTriggered
Four-Year Graduation Rate Below 50%
Stephen F Austin State University's 4-year graduation rate fell below 50% in 5 of 5 reported years — triggering the 3-of-5 threshold.
Student OutcomesTriggered
Pell Gap Exceeds 10 Points
Stephen F Austin State University's Pell graduation gap exceeded 10 percentage points in 3 of 5 eligible years — triggering the 3-of-5 threshold.
Student OutcomesTriggered
Revenue-to-Expense Below 1.0
Stephen F Austin State University's revenue-to-expense ratio fell below 1.0 in 3 of 5 reported years — triggering the 3-of-5 threshold. 2024: 2.10×.
Financial HealthTriggered
Enrollment Declined 5% or More
Stephen F Austin State University's total enrollment fell from 9,915 to 8,339 students between 2020 and 2024 (-15.9%) — a decline of 5% or more.
Financial HealthTriggered
Endowment Under $50M or Growth Under 15%
Stephen F Austin State University's endowment is $135.4M and grew +31.3% between 2020 and 2024 — clearing both the $50 million size threshold and the 15% growth threshold.
Financial HealthCleared
High Cost, Low Completion
Stephen F Austin State University costs less than the national median AND graduates students at below-median rates — only one of two conditions is met.
Value for MoneyCleared
Spending on Students Below the National Median
Stephen F Austin State University's ratio fell below the national median of $2.75 in 1 of 5 reported years — below the 3-of-5 trigger threshold.
Value for MoneyCleared
Rising Price, Falling Outcomes
Either net price did not rise or the graduation rate did not decline between 2020 and 2024 — flag not triggered.
Value for MoneyCleared