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Private for-profit · COLLEGE PAYOFF

Columbia Southern University

⌖ Orange Beach, AL · 28 reportable field-and-credential outcomes

MODELED SCENARIO · Positive payoff

+$42,950 over 10 years

Modeled from observed year-5 institution earnings and the institution-wide average net price over four years.

This is a positive modeled result. Price, time to finish and future earnings can still change the outcome.

8.5 yrsModeled economic break-even
+18%Modeled 10-year ROI
$73,127Observed earnings · year 5
Economic ROI includes direct price and earnings forgone during study · $45,000 comparison earnings · values held flat · see the formula
ECONOMIC INVESTMENT → PAYBACK

Estimated payoff over ten years.

The scenario counts direct price and earnings forgone upfront, then applies the reported annual earnings premium.

10-YEAR PAYOFF CURVECumulative economic payoff after graduation
+$42,950at year 10
Net gainInvestment not yet recovered
NET GAIN$0UNRECOVERED
−$238,3200
2
4
6
8
+$42,95010
Years after graduationBreak-even: 8.5 years
FEDERAL COST DATA

Four ways to read college price.

Annual college-wide figures from the current College Scorecard release. Average net price covers full-time, first-time undergraduates receiving federal aid; public-college figures use in-state students. Program tuition and individual aid offers may differ.

Published in-state tuition$6,760
Sticker price
Published out-of-state tuition$6,760
Sticker price
Average net price$14,580
Title IV student average
Cost of attendance$18,226
Tuition + living budget
PRICE SOURCECollege reported · annual amount · federal dataset
OBSERVED FEDERAL MEASURES

Cost, debt, completion and earnings context

$14,580Average net price / year
$18,226Cost of attendance
$21,339Median federal student debt · completer borrowers
$226/moPublished 10-year payment estimate
$73,127Median earnings · year 5 after completion
33.3%Completion rate
Not availableAdmission rate
12,176Student size

Institution debt covers federal student-loan borrowers who completed. Parent PLUS and private loans are excluded; missing and privacy-suppressed values remain unavailable.

PRICE BY FAMILY INCOME

Average net price is not one price

Federal averages for aided students in each family-income band. Your aid offer can differ.

$0–30k$12,913
$30–48k$13,455
$48–75k$15,569
$75–110k$16,226
$110k+$17,408
LONGER-TERM CONTEXT

What happens beyond the first earnings measure

Year 5$73,127
Year 6$55,140
Year 10$63,534
Full-time retention
71.0%
Part-time retention
50.0%
Completion within 200% of normal time
22.4%

Earnings timepoints may use different historical cohorts and should not be read as one group’s guaranteed salary growth.

NATIONAL CONTEXT

How this college compares

Percentiles compare this institution with currently operating colleges that report the same federal measure.

92thEarnings percentile
15thCompletion percentile
WHAT STANDS OUT

A faster read on this college

These summaries use only reportable field-and-credential records at this institution. They do not fill privacy-suppressed outcomes.

$74,452Median year-4 earnings across reportable program categories
$25,876Median federal debt across categories that report debt
63%Of earnings-reporting categories above their same-field national benchmark
EARNINGS PATH

Reported earnings over time

$68,574Year 1
$80,589Year 4
$73,127Year 5

Separate federal cohorts may underlie different measurement years.

PROGRAM PAYOFF SPREAD

The college average is not the whole story.

Observed earnings vary substantially by field and credential at the same institution.

1Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians · Master's Degree$99,8472Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions · Bachelor's Degree$95,7743Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians · Bachelor's Degree$94,4804Homeland Security · Master's Degree$93,8515Business Administration, Management and Operations · Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma$89,2036Fire Protection · Bachelor's Degree$88,7357Fire Protection · Associate's Degree$88,1148Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians · Associate's Degree$87,340

Observed year-4 earnings · compare like fields and credentials before deciding

BUILD A REAL SHORTLIST

Comparable colleges in AL

Currently operating private for-profit institutions with the closest combination of annual net price and observed year-5 earnings. Similarity is descriptive—not a quality ranking.

Montgomery, AL

South University-Montgomery

Annual net price
$27,807
Observed earnings · year 5
$59,826
Modeled 10-year ROI
-49%
Open college profile →Huntsville, AL

The Salon Professional Academy-Huntsville

Annual net price
$16,043
Observed earnings · year 5
$30,703
Modeled 10-year ROI
-159%
Open college profile →Mobile, AL

Fortis College

Annual net price
$19,074
Observed earnings · year 5
$30,478
Modeled 10-year ROI
-157%
Open college profile →Birmingham, AL

Fortis Institute-Birmingham

Annual net price
$25,946
Observed earnings · year 5
$37,327
Modeled 10-year ROI
-127%
Open college profile →
ALL REPORTABLE PROGRAM CATEGORIES

Explore exact field-and-credential outcomes

Federal fieldCredentialEarnings, year 4Federal debt
Quality Control and Safety Technologies/TechniciansMaster's Degree$99,847Not available
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment ProfessionsBachelor's Degree$95,774$24,518
Quality Control and Safety Technologies/TechniciansBachelor's Degree$94,480$28,415
Homeland SecurityMaster's Degree$93,851Not available
Business Administration, Management and OperationsUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$89,203$25,876
Fire ProtectionBachelor's Degree$88,735$21,248
Fire ProtectionAssociate's Degree$88,114$10,500
Quality Control and Safety Technologies/TechniciansAssociate's Degree$87,340$16,710
Quality Control and Safety Technologies/TechniciansUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$84,636$16,426
Natural Resources Conservation and ResearchBachelor's Degree$81,292$27,071
Business Administration, Management and OperationsMaster's Degree$79,103Not available
Natural Resources Conservation and ResearchUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$78,159$27,275
Computer/Information Technology Administration and ManagementBachelor's Degree$77,738$34,056
Public AdministrationMaster's Degree$74,452Not available
Homeland SecurityBachelor's Degree$73,703$32,683
Criminal Justice and CorrectionsBachelor's Degree$70,354$30,204
Business Administration, Management and OperationsBachelor's Degree$69,343$31,284
Public HealthMaster's Degree$66,208Not available
Criminal Justice and CorrectionsAssociate's Degree$66,000$17,078
Criminal Justice and CorrectionsMaster's Degree$64,135Not available
Computer and Information Sciences, GeneralBachelor's Degree$63,248$28,578
Human Resources Management and ServicesBachelor's Degree$62,061$31,715
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesAssociate's Degree$62,009$15,923
Health and Medical Administrative ServicesBachelor's Degree$61,821$38,210
Business Administration, Management and OperationsAssociate's Degree$61,433$21,764
Mental and Social Health Services and Allied ProfessionsBachelor's Degree$49,618$33,180
Health and Medical Administrative ServicesAssociate's Degree$40,382$23,209
Human Resources Management and ServicesUndergraduate Certificate or DiplomaNot available$23,906

Earnings, price, completion and enrollment are observed federal measures. ROI, payoff and break-even are modeled scenarios built from those measures and fixed assumptions. College payoff is not the payoff of every degree at this school; use the program table for a more precise comparison.