Colleges / Carolina University
College · Private nonprofit · Winston-Salem, NC · City
CU

Carolina University

Winston-Salem, NC

Religious affiliation
Address420 S. Broad St., Winston-Salem, NC 27101
Websitewww.carolinau.edu
Price calculatorRun your numbers →
Admit rate40%
6-yr median pay$31k
Net price / yr$21k
Undergrad size460
§ I · The real read

What it's actually like.

The bet

Net price of $21k/yr for a shot at a $31k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.

Getting in

Admit rate of 40% means this is selective — grades, essays, and testing matter.

If you get in

460 undergrads. Tiny. Every professor will know your name.

Where you live

City campus — public transit, off-campus food, weekends happen nearby.

§ II · Cost & aid

Sticker vs. real.

Sticker cost of attendance is $33k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $21k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.

Sticker · 4 yrs$131k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$83k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$47k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback2.7x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.

Where the money goes · annual sticker.

Tuition · in-state
$17.6k
Room & board
$12.4k
Books & supplies
$2,600

How students pay for it.

Pell grants37%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans45%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$20k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $7k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes

Do people finish? Do they land?

1-yr retention56%
Watch this number.
Graduation · 6 yr22%
A meaningful chunk do not finish — ask why.
6-yr median pay$31k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$33k
Ten years out — where grads tend to land career-wise.
Transfer out17%
Share of full-time students who transfer to another school.
§ IV · Campus & identity

Setting, size, and who this school is.

Setting
City
Control
Private nonprofit
Undergrad size
460
Location
Winston-Salem, NC
Region
Southeast (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, VA, WV)
Carnegie class
Master's Colleges & Universities: Smaller Programs
Size & setting
Four-year · very small · primarily residential
Undergrad program
Four-year · medium full-time, selective, higher transfer-in
Accreditor
Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools
Identity
Religious affiliation
§ · Who studies here

The student body at a glance.

  • International33%
  • White28%
  • Black18%
  • Hispanic12%
  • Two or more races6%
  • Asian2%
First-gen students33%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time4%
Mostly a full-time student body.
Median family income$32k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 21

What you can study.

Colleges / Carolina University
College · Private nonprofit · Winston-Salem, NC · City
CU

Carolina University

Winston-Salem, NC

Religious affiliation
Address420 S. Broad St., Winston-Salem, NC 27101
Websitewww.carolinau.edu
Price calculatorRun your numbers →
Admit rate40%
6-yr median pay$31k
Net price / yr$21k
Undergrad size460
§ I · The real read

What it's actually like.

The bet

Net price of $21k/yr for a shot at a $31k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.

Getting in

Admit rate of 40% means this is selective — grades, essays, and testing matter.

If you get in

460 undergrads. Tiny. Every professor will know your name.

Where you live

City campus — public transit, off-campus food, weekends happen nearby.

§ II · Cost & aid

Sticker vs. real.

Sticker cost of attendance is $33k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $21k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.

Sticker · 4 yrs$131k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$83k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$47k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback2.7x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.

Where the money goes · annual sticker.

Tuition · in-state
$17.6k
Room & board
$12.4k
Books & supplies
$2,600

How students pay for it.

Pell grants37%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans45%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$20k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $7k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes

Do people finish? Do they land?

1-yr retention56%
Watch this number.
Graduation · 6 yr22%
A meaningful chunk do not finish — ask why.
6-yr median pay$31k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$33k
Ten years out — where grads tend to land career-wise.
Transfer out17%
Share of full-time students who transfer to another school.
§ IV · Campus & identity

Setting, size, and who this school is.

Setting
City
Control
Private nonprofit
Undergrad size
460
Location
Winston-Salem, NC
Region
Southeast (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, VA, WV)
Carnegie class
Master's Colleges & Universities: Smaller Programs
Size & setting
Four-year · very small · primarily residential
Undergrad program
Four-year · medium full-time, selective, higher transfer-in
Accreditor
Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools
Identity
Religious affiliation
§ · Who studies here

The student body at a glance.

  • International33%
  • White28%
  • Black18%
  • Hispanic12%
  • Two or more races6%
  • Asian2%
First-gen students33%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time4%
Mostly a full-time student body.
Median family income$32k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 21

What you can study.