Private nonprofit · University

Brescia University

Owensboro, Kentucky · Small city

#2 most selective in Kentucky#4 best value in Kentucky
35.2%
Admit rate
$8,709
Avg net price
54%
Graduation rate
$45,500
Median earnings

Brescia University is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Owensboro, Kentucky (small city setting), enrolling 545 undergraduates. It has a Roman Catholic religious affiliation.

Private nonprofitSmall · 545 undergradsSmall citySelective · 35% admitNAIA Division ICold winters

About Owensboro, Kentucky

Owensboro is a city in Daviess County, Kentucky, United States, of which it is also the county seat. Following a series of failed uprisings with British support, however, the last Shawnee were forced to vacate the area before the end of the 18th century. Owensboro was named an All-America City in 2013. Owensboro placed fourth on Area Development's Top 20 Southern Cities, with a 9th-place ranking for its "recession busting factors" among the Top 25 Small Cities. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Small city
Highest degree offered
Graduate
To Great Lakes shore
267 miles
Nearest airport
4 miles to Owensboro Daviess County (OWB)

How Brescia University compares

Selectivity35.2%

More selective than 92% · #2 most selective of 26 in Kentucky

Graduation rate54%

Higher than 48% · #12 of 30 in Kentucky

First-year retention67%

Higher than 25%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$45,500

Higher than 25% · #14 of 29 in Kentucky

Average net price$8,709

Cheaper than 94% · #4 cheapest of 29 in Kentucky

Median debt at graduation$29,430

Lower than 5%

Student–faculty ratio13 : 1

Lower than 50%

Undergraduate enrollment545

Larger than 23%

Percentiles compare Brescia University with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Kentucky.

Student body

Undergraduate vs. graduate

675students
  • Undergraduate54581%
  • Graduate13019%

Undergraduates by gender

545undergrads
  • Women40474%
  • Men14126%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White58%
  • Black13%
  • Hispanic6.2%
  • Asian2.6%
  • Other or multiracial21%

Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
545
Graduate enrollment
130
Student–faculty ratio
13 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
43%
First-generation students
45%
Students over 25
23%
Median family income
$34,373
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$55,638
Endowment
$17,456,238

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Where students come from

Home state of the 149 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Kentucky58%
  • Other U.S. states28%
  • International13%

A regional draw: about 58% of first-years come from Kentucky, the rest from elsewhere.

13% came from outside the U.S. Out-of-state students usually pay a higher tuition rate at public schools — check the cost card above for your bracket. Source: IPEDS residence & migration, fall 2023 entering class.

Admissions

Admission rate
35.2%
Test scores
Not considered
SAT range (25th–75th %)
SAT average
SAT reading
SAT math
ACT composite

Cost

In-state tuition
$31,550
Room & board
$13,200
Books & supplies
$3,000
Total cost of attendance
$44,328
Average net price
$8,709

Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.

Outcomes

Graduated (within 6 years)
54%
Graduated on time (4 years)
44%
First-year retention
67%
Transferred to another college
0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$39,897
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$45,500
Median debt at graduation
$29,430
Students with federal loans
52%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
41%

About 10% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
44%
Low-income (Pell)
41%
First-generation
39%

When these bars run close together, students from every background tend to finish at similar rates — a sign the school supports the ~30% who are first-gen or low-income.

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing
Yes
Dorm capacity
313
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
57%
Application fee
$25
Athletics
NAIA Division I
Varsity athletes
385 (206 men · 179 women)

Housing and fees: IPEDS 2023–24. Athletics rosters: Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25. Dorm capacity can include graduate and family housing, so the share of undergrads can top 100%.

Varsity sports (10)

Track and Field and Cross Country (combined)90
Basketball62
Soccer58
Baseball53
Volleyball40
Softball28
Tennis20
Golf16
Other Sports12
Bowling6

Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.

Campus safety

Safety grade
C
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
4.3 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
0
Property offenses (2022–2024)
9

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (690 students). Counts reflect reports, not convictions — schools with strong reporting cultures often show more, so a higher count doesn't simply mean a more dangerous campus.

Reported offenses in an average year

The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.

3.0reported offenses a year
0 violent a year3.0 property a year

By offense type, per year

Motor vehicle theft
3.0

Averages, not a forecast — a single year can run well above or below this. Bars are scaled against this campus's most-reported offense, so they compare types here rather than against other schools.

What you'll actually pay, by family income

Average net price (total cost minus grants and scholarships) paid by aided students in each family-income band.

< $30k
$8,977
$30–48k
$9,343
$48–75k
$12,984
$75–110k
$8,910
$110k+
$5,548

College Scorecard / IPEDS, most recent year. Family income is total household income; net price covers tuition, fees, room, board and supplies after grant aid, for students receiving federal aid.

Four-year (or more) true cost

Net price for your family's income, projected across the time it actually takes students here to graduate.

Est. total to a degree
$55,537

$12,984/year × about 4.3 years — most students here don't finish in exactly four, and each extra term adds cost. A planning estimate from net-price and graduation-timing data, not a bill.

Does the school pay you to attend?

Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.

98%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$20,900
average award, among those who get one

Brescia University discounts heavily: 98% of freshmen are awarded a grant straight from the school, averaging $20,900. For many families the real price lands well below sticker.

Blends need-based and merit aid — IPEDS doesn't split the two, so a high number can mean generous merit scholarships, deep need-based aid, or both. Figures cover 99 full-time first-year undergraduates, 2022–23. Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid.

Is it worth it?

A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.

Median earnings (10 years)
$45,500
Typical debt at graduation
$29,430
Debt vs. one year's pay
65%
Out-earn a HS grad
54%

Typical debt would take roughly 6.5 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Weigh it value

The payoff is less clear-cut here — weigh the debt against the earnings and your intended field before borrowing heavily.

Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.

The pay gap here

Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.

Women
$43,212
Men
$51,933

Men out-earn women by $8,721 (20%) a decade out.

Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.

Campus climate

Summer high
88°F
Winter low
24°F
Annual rain
47.6″
Annual snow
6.6″

Average temperature

HighLow
10°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.55.0JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Newburgh L&D, IN US station (18.3 mi from campus).

Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.

Colleges similar to Brescia University

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Brescia University side by side →

Colleges near Brescia University

Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.