College · Private nonprofit · Lebanon, IL · Suburb
McKendree University
Lebanon, IL
Religious affiliation
Admit rate72%
6-yr median pay$49k
Net price / yr$25k
Undergrad size1,752
§ I · The real read
What it's actually like.
The bet
Net price of $25k/yr for a shot at a $49k first-5-year salary. Math out whether that works for you — it does for some people, not for others.
Getting in
Admit rate of 72% means this is workable if your grades and essays are solid.
If you get in
1,752 undergrads. Tiny. Every professor will know your name.
Where you live
Suburban — a short drive to the nearest city, greener but still connected.
§ II · Cost & aid
Sticker vs. real.
Sticker cost of attendance is $49k/yr. After need-based aid, the average student pays $25k/yr. Merit aid varies. Run your EFC calculator before you rule anything out.
Sticker · 4 yrs$195k
Before any aid.
Net · 4 yrs$99k
What the average student pays.
Typical aid$97k
Difference over 4 years — higher for lower-income households.
Payback2.0x
4-yr net price ÷ first-5-year salary. Lower is better.
Where the money goes · annual sticker.
- Tuition · in-state
- $34.7k
- Room & board
- $12.7k
- Books & supplies
- $1,000
How students pay for it.
Pell grants34%
Share of undergrads on federal Pell grants.
Federal loans42%
Share taking out federal student loans.
Median debt · grads$23k
What the median student owes at graduation. Non-completers: $10k.
3-yr default0%
Low — grads tend to pay on time.
§ III · Outcomes
Do people finish? Do they land?
1-yr retention68%
Watch this number.
Graduation · 6 yr53%
A meaningful chunk do not finish — ask why.
6-yr median pay$49k
Cross-major. Your major's number can be very different.
10-yr median pay$59k
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
- Suburb
- Control
- Private nonprofit
- Undergrad size
- 1,752
- Location
- Lebanon, IL
- Region
- Great Lakes (IL, IN, MI, OH, WI)
- Carnegie class
- Master's Colleges & Universities: Medium Programs
- Size & setting
- Four-year · small · highly residential
- Undergrad program
- Four-year · full-time, inclusive, higher transfer-in
- Accreditor
- Higher Learning Commission
Identity
Religious affiliation
§ · Who studies here
The student body at a glance.
- White54%
- Unknown16%
- International10%
- Black9%
- Two or more races5%
- Hispanic5%
- Asian1%
First-gen students33%
Share whose parents didn't complete college.
Part-time7%
Mostly a full-time student body.
Median family income$49k
Of enrolled students' households — useful for aid context.
§ V · Majors offered here · 45
What you can study.