-21%
Undergraduate enrollment
Undergraduate enrollment at Valdosta State University fell 21% between 2021 and 2024 (8.4k → 6.6k).
Georgia · Public · Predominantly bachelor's
Valdosta State University
Valdosta, Georgia. 6,858 undergraduate students. 81 programs in the federal Field-of-Study dataset.
ANOMALY ENGINE · NOTABLE SIGNALS
What the data flags at Valdosta State University
Short-arc shifts (recent 3-year window), peer outliers, earnings trend breaks, completion drops, enrollment cliffs, and debt-to-earnings warnings — surfaced deterministically from the federal record. Multi-decade shifts are reported separately in the Long Arc section, since 25-year tuition drift isn't really an anomaly.
-100%
3-year cohort default rate
3-year cohort default rate at Valdosta State University fell 100% between 2021 and 2024 (3.2% → 0.0%).
+28%
First-year retention
First-year retention at Valdosta State University rose 28% between 2021 and 2024 (56.0% → 71.9%).
+22%
100%-time completion
100%-time completion at Valdosta State University rose 22% between 2021 and 2024 (20.8% → 25.4%).
SECTION 01 · OUTCOMES SNAPSHOT
The numbers, vs. Georgia
Each tile compares this institution to the Georgia median for the same metric. Sub-line shows the comparison value, not an interpretation. Sparklines trace the federally available history.
$49,361+25% · 6→10y
Georgia median $38,208$39,416
Treasury earnings · 6y post-entry41.7%-10% · '97→'09
Georgia median 41.6%$13,750+466% · '97→'20
At program completion6,858-22% · '96→'24
latest IPEDS67.5%-5% · '04→'24
first-time, full-time83.5%+2% · '02→'24
latest cohort$6,007+142% · '01→'24
out-of-state $17,062SECTION 02 · EARNINGS HORIZONS
How earnings spread, 4 to 10 years after entry
Treasury tax-record earnings for federally aided students who first enrolled at this institution. Each point is a horizon from the most-recent vintage. Single median per horizon (no p25/p75 publishing).
Earnings widen with time post-entry. Selection: federal-aid recipients only — not all graduates.Methodology →
SECTION 03 · DEBT-TO-EARNINGS
What loans cost relative to earnings
Annual debt service as a share of median earnings 10 years after entry, computed under federal Direct loan terms (10-year fixed at 6%). The 8% line is the gainful-employment threshold from federal regulation; above 12% has historically been considered “failing” under prior rule cycles.
Institution-wide
3.7%Median federal debt $13,750 amortized over 10 years vs. median earnings $49,361 (10y after entry).
SECTION 04 · LONG ARC
Ten-plus year arc
Federally available history. Coverage varies by metric — IPEDS publishes some series only after 2009 and others only before.
Undergraduate enrollment.
150%-time completion rate.
Median federal student debt at exit.
-25%
Valdosta State University · completion · 100% fell
33.9% → 25.4%
-22%
Valdosta State University · undergrad enrollment fell
8,465 → 6,622
+142%
Valdosta State University · in-state tuition rose
$2,526 → $6,124
+114%
Valdosta State University · out-of-state tuition rose
$8,322 → $17,836
+466%
Valdosta State University · median debt rose
$4,375 → $24,779
-100%
Valdosta State University · cohort default rate fell
8.2% → 0.0%
+77%
Valdosta State University · pell share rose
29.5% → 52.3%
+27%
Valdosta State University · earnings_median_10yr rose
$38,800 → $49,361
+23%
Valdosta State University · earnings_median_8yr rose
$35,100 → $43,211
+27%
Valdosta State University · earnings_median_6yr rose
$31,100 → $39,416
SECTION 05 · PROGRAMS
Ranked by 5-year earnings
Each row is one (CIP × credential) program reported by the institution in College Scorecard's Field-of-Study data. Cohort floor is 30 students; below this, federal data is suppressed.
Educational Administration and Supervision.$84,270Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing.$78,057Educational/Instructional Media Design.$77,263Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods.$72,856Computer and Information Sciences, General.$68,023Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas.$66,013Accounting and Related Services.$62,981Finance and Financial Management Services.$61,766Public Administration.$59,110Communication Disorders Sciences and Services.$59,093Social Work.$57,839Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods.$57,746Business Administration, Management and Operations.$55,405Political Science and Government.$55,175Health and Physical Education/Fitness.$54,862Biology, General.$54,815Communication Disorders Sciences and Services.$52,114Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions.$51,600Special Education and Teaching.$51,162Dental Support Services and Allied Professions.$50,055Communication and Media Studies.$48,769Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods.$48,764Educational Administration and Supervision.$46,543Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas.$46,175
Showing top 24 of 35 ranked programs.
SECTION 06 · BY CIP FAMILY
35 programs with earnings, grouped
Programs are grouped by 2-digit CIP family. Programs without reported earnings are hidden to keep the list focused.
COMPUTER & INFORMATION SCIENCES · CIP 11
EDUCATION · CIP 13
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods.$57,746Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas.$66,013Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods.$48,764Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods.$72,856Educational/Instructional Media Design.$77,263Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas.$46,175Educational Administration and Supervision.$46,543Educational Administration and Supervision.$84,270Special Education and Teaching.$51,162
ENGLISH LANGUAGE & LITERATURE · CIP 23
LIBERAL ARTS & GENERAL STUDIES · CIP 24
LIBRARY SCIENCE · CIP 25
BIOLOGICAL & BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES · CIP 26
PARKS, RECREATION & FITNESS · CIP 31
PSYCHOLOGY · CIP 42
HOMELAND SECURITY & PROTECTIVE SERVICES · CIP 43
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION & SOCIAL SERVICES · CIP 44
SOCIAL SCIENCES · CIP 45
VISUAL & PERFORMING ARTS · CIP 50
HEALTH PROFESSIONS · CIP 51
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing.$78,057Communication Disorders Sciences and Services.$59,093Communication Disorders Sciences and Services.$52,114Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions.$51,600Dental Support Services and Allied Professions.$50,055
BUSINESS, MANAGEMENT & MARKETING · CIP 52
HISTORY · CIP 54
COMMUNICATION & JOURNALISM · CIP 09
FINANCIAL OUTCOME · ILLUSTRATION
Estimate the financial outcome at Valdosta State University
Pick a program. Cost from Scorecard net price by family income; earnings from Treasury 5-year-post-completion median, projected forward with a Mincer age-earnings curve. The selection-bias toggle applies the Dale-Krueger shrinkage. Outcomes illustration, not a forecast — see methodology.
Shrinks the earnings premium toward the matched-applicant mean. STEM <15%, business ~40%, arts & education ~60%.
NET PRESENT VALUE
$350,265
Over 40 years, discounted 5.0%
BREAKEVEN
Year 10
First year cumulative discounted earnings cross zero
- Cost per year
- $12,659
- HS-only baseline · GA
- $35,800
- Years to complete
- 4
- CIP family
- 52
Outcomes illustration · not a forecast. Projects observed Scorecard earnings forward with a Mincer age-earnings curve under your assumptions. See methodology for the math.
SECTION 07 · SIMILAR INSTITUTIONS
Same sector and degree mix in Georgia
Picked by Carnegie sector × predominant credential level. These are not rankings — just nearest-neighbour surfaces for comparison.
CAUSAL DISCIPLINE
“Valdosta State University graduates earn $X” — not “Valdosta State University makes you earn $X”
Median earnings describe what cohorts earned. They do not describe what attending Valdosta State University caused. Selection effects (who admits, who enrolls, who completes) are real. We publish federal data with strict descriptive phrasing — and link the methodology where you can read about the limitations directly.