College · Private for-profit · Orange Beach, AL · Town
Columbia Southern University
Orange Beach, AL
Online-only
Admit rate—
6-yr median pay$55k
Net price / yr$15k
Undergrad size12,176
§ I · The real read
What it's actually like.
The bet
Net price of $15k/yr for a shot at a $55k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.
Getting in
Admit rate of unspecified means this is admit rate not reported for this school.
If you get in
12,176 undergrads. Medium. Clubs matter for finding your people.
Where you live
Town setting — self-contained, social life mostly on campus.
§ II · Cost & aid
Sticker vs. real.
Sticker cost of attendance is $18k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $15k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.
Sticker · 4 yrs$73k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$58k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$15k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback1.1x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.
Where the money goes · annual sticker.
- Tuition · in-state
- $6.8k
- Books & supplies
- $0
How students pay for it.
Pell grants24%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans26%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$21k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $9k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes
Do people finish? Do they land?
1-yr retention66%
Watch this number.
Graduation · 6 yr33%
A meaningful chunk do not finish — ask why.
6-yr median pay$55k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$64k
Ten years out — where grads tend to land career-wise.
Transfer out0%
Share of full-time students who transfer to another school.
§ IV · Campus & identity
Setting, size, and who this school is.
- Setting
- Town
- Control
- Private for-profit
- Undergrad size
- 12,176
- Location
- Orange Beach, AL
- Region
- Southeast (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, VA, WV)
- Carnegie class
- Master's Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs
- Size & setting
- Four-year · large · primarily nonresidential
- Undergrad program
- Four-year · higher part-time
- Accreditor
- Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges
§ · Who studies here
The student body at a glance.
- White61%
- Black19%
- Unknown13%
- Two or more races3%
- Asian1%
- Hispanic1%
- American Indian / Alaska Native1%
- Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander1%
First-gen students54%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time34%
Mixed full-time and part-time.
Veterans3%
Share using veteran education benefits.
Median family income$35k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 12
What you can study.