Quick Answer: Tuition vs Net Price
Tuition is the listed school charge. Net price is the average cost after grants and scholarships, so it is usually better for affordability comparison.
Student outcomes help answer a question that tuition alone cannot: what happens after students enroll? In federal college data, outcomes can include completion rates, earnings after entry, repayment measures and student body context. These numbers do not describe every graduate's future, but they help families compare value beyond admissions selectivity.
10-Year Median Earnings
10-year median earnings usually refers to former students measured about 10 years after they entered college, where the federal dataset reports the value. It can be influenced by program mix, local wages, graduate school enrollment and student demographics. Compare earnings across similar schools or program types rather than treating the number as a guaranteed salary.
Completion Rate at 150% Time
A 150% completion rate measures whether students finished within one and a half times the normal program length. For many four-year programs, that means completion within six years. For shorter certificate programs, the window is shorter. This label can look confusing, but it does not mean a completion rate over 100%; it means the measurement window is 150% of normal time.
Use Outcomes With Cost Data
The national average 10-year earnings value in our College Scorecard is $43,639 for schools with reported values. Read it beside net price, loan rate and completion rate. A lower-cost school with strong completion may be a better fit than a more selective school with a higher bill and unclear outcomes.
Our methodology page explains how missing data is handled and why not every school reports every outcome field.