College Viability Inspection Report

University of Arkansas

Arkansas · Public

University of Arkansas is a public institution in Arkansas, enrolling 25,821 students as of 2024. It graduates 53% of students in four years, returns 86% of freshmen for a second year, and costs an average of $18,408 a year after grants and scholarships. Of the 9 inspection checks that could be evaluated, 1 is flagged: Equity Gap. This report benchmarks University of Arkansas'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.

University of Arkansas 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.

Look Beyond the Brochure. Then Ask Your College.

Changing the Balance of Power from Colleges to Students and Families.

Every campus tour is a sales pitch. Colleges will show you the beautiful quad and the smiling Dean — not what doesn't flatter them. The right questions can reveal information that significantly impacts your experience.
College Viability
Data Summary

University of Arkansas — All Reported Indicators

Plain-text reference table of every metric and inspection flag for University of Arkansas. 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 Rate53.0%+12.8%69th
Six-Year Graduation Rate69.0%+4.5%75th
Full-Time Retention Rate86.0%+1.2%77th
Pell Grant Six-Year Graduation Rate55.3%+1.6%64th
Pell-to-Non-Pell Graduation Gap18.7pp+5.2%86th
Pell Share of Cohort18.9%-10.7%14th

Financial Health

Metric2024 Value5-Yr % ChangeNational Percentile
Revenue-to-Expense Ratio1.09×+1.2%55th
Total FTE Enrollment25,821+18.6%97th
Endowment Value$1.67B+37.7%96th
Net Assets (End of Year)$1.63B+28.1%94th

Value for Money

Metric2024 Value5-Yr % ChangeNational Percentile
Instructional Spending %27.8%-9.2%29th
Student Support Spending %6.8%+48.1%21st
Administrative Spending %6.9%+16.9%7th
Instruction+Support to Admin Ratio5.01×-15.9%89th
Average Net Price$18,408+9.8%47th
Net Price: $0-30K Income$14,319+19.3%53rd
Net Price: $30K-48K Income$14,322+4.6%50th
Net Price: $48-75K Income$15,934-2.0%47th
Net Price: $75K-110K Income$20,772+9.0%52nd
Net Price: $110K+ Income$22,470+12.9%38th

Inspection Flags

FlagSectionStatus
Retention Below 80%
University of Arkansas's retention rate stayed at or above 85% in all 5 reported years — above the 80% threshold.
Student OutcomesCleared
Four-Year Graduation Rate Below 50%
University of Arkansas's 4-year graduation rate fell below 50% in 2 of 5 reported years — below the 3-of-5 trigger threshold.
Student OutcomesCleared
Pell Gap Exceeds 10 Points
University of Arkansas's Pell graduation gap exceeded 10 percentage points in 5 of 5 eligible years — triggering the 3-of-5 threshold.
Student OutcomesTriggered
Revenue-to-Expense Below 1.0
University of Arkansas's ratio stayed at or above 1.0 in all 5 reported years — ending at 1.09× in 2024.
Financial HealthCleared
Enrollment Declined 5% or More
University of Arkansas's total enrollment grew from 21,776 to 25,821 students between 2020 and 2024 (+18.6%).
Financial HealthCleared
Endowment Under $50M or Growth Under 15%
University of Arkansas's endowment is $1.67B and grew +37.7% between 2020 and 2024 — clearing both the $50 million size threshold and the 15% growth threshold.
Financial HealthCleared
High Cost, Low Completion
University of Arkansas costs less than the national median AND graduates students at above-median rates — neither condition for this flag is met.
Value for MoneyCleared
Spending on Students Below the National Median
University of Arkansas spends $5.01 on instruction and student support per $1 of admin in 2024 — at or above the national median of $2.75 in every reported year.
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