College Viability Inspection Report

University of Nevada-Reno

Nevada · Public

University of Nevada-Reno is a public institution in Nevada, enrolling 15,954 students as of 2024. It graduates 41% of students in four years, returns 80% of freshmen for a second year, and costs an average of $17,226 a year after grants and scholarships. Of the 9 inspection checks that could be evaluated, 2 are flagged: Graduation and Equity Gap. This report benchmarks University of Nevada-Reno'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 Nevada-Reno 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 Nevada-Reno — All Reported Indicators

Plain-text reference table of every metric and inspection flag for University of Nevada-Reno. 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 Rate41.0%+41.4%51st
Six-Year Graduation Rate62.0%+6.9%63rd
Full-Time Retention Rate80.0%0.0%61st
Pell Grant Six-Year Graduation Rate54.3%+3.5%62nd
Pell-to-Non-Pell Graduation Gap9.4pp-15.2%52nd
Pell Share of Cohort25.6%-8.0%24th

Financial Health

Metric2024 Value5-Yr % ChangeNational Percentile
Revenue-to-Expense Ratio1.02×-3.7%33rd
Total FTE Enrollment15,954-2.7%93rd
Endowment Value$560.1M+52.4%89th
Net Assets (End of Year)$677.1M+16.2%87th

Value for Money

Metric2024 Value5-Yr % ChangeNational Percentile
Instructional Spending %31.8%-6.7%43rd
Student Support Spending %8.6%+7.7%30th
Administrative Spending %10.0%-3.1%16th
Instruction+Support to Admin Ratio4.02×-0.9%77th
Average Net Price$17,226+5.3%43rd
Net Price: $0-30K Income$12,674+7.5%45th
Net Price: $30K-48K Income$13,125+5.9%44th
Net Price: $48-75K Income$14,537-3.8%39th
Net Price: $75K-110K Income$18,317+2.3%39th
Net Price: $110K+ Income$21,646+10.3%34th

Inspection Flags

FlagSectionStatus
Retention Below 80%
University of Nevada-Reno's retention rate fell below 80% in 1 of 5 reported years — below the 3-of-5 trigger threshold.
Student OutcomesCleared
Four-Year Graduation Rate Below 50%
University of Nevada-Reno'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
University of Nevada-Reno's Pell graduation gap exceeded 10 percentage points in 4 of 5 eligible years — triggering the 3-of-5 threshold.
Student OutcomesTriggered
Revenue-to-Expense Below 1.0
University of Nevada-Reno's ratio fell below 1.0 in 1 of 5 reported years — below the 3-of-5 trigger threshold.
Financial HealthCleared
Enrollment Declined 5% or More
University of Nevada-Reno's total enrollment fell from 16,397 to 15,954 students between 2020 and 2024 (-2.7%) — less than the 5% decline that triggers this flag.
Financial HealthCleared
Endowment Under $50M or Growth Under 15%
University of Nevada-Reno's endowment is $560.1M and grew +52.4% between 2020 and 2024 — clearing both the $50 million size threshold and the 15% growth threshold.
Financial HealthCleared
High Cost, Low Completion
University of Nevada-Reno 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 Nevada-Reno spends $4.02 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