Private nonprofit · University

Carolina University

Winston-Salem, North Carolina · Large city

39.5%
Admit rate
$20,828
Avg net price
22%
Graduation rate
$32,864
Median earnings

Carolina University is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Winston-Salem, North Carolina (large city setting), enrolling 460 undergraduates. It has a Other religious affiliation.

Private nonprofitSmall · 460 undergradsLarge citySelective · 40% admitNAIA Division ICold winters

About Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Winston-Salem is a city in Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. Followers of the Moravian Church had interacted with Cherokees. The city of Winston-Salem is a product of the merging of the two neighboring towns of Winston and Salem in 1913. Old Salem is a restored Moravian settlement founded in 1766. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large city
Highest degree offered
Graduate
To the ocean
179 miles
Nearest airport
17 miles to Piedmont Triad (GSO) · major hub

How Carolina University compares

Selectivity39.5%

More selective than 90% · #7 most selective of 53 in North Carolina

Graduation rate22%

Higher than 7% · #53 of 56 in North Carolina

First-year retention56%

Higher than 10%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$32,864

Higher than 5% · #54 of 57 in North Carolina

Average net price$20,828

Cheaper than 46% · #35 cheapest of 57 in North Carolina

Median debt at graduation$20,287

Lower than 73%

Student–faculty ratio17 : 1

Lower than 23%

Undergraduate enrollment460

Larger than 20%

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

Student body

Undergraduate vs. graduate

880students
  • Undergraduate46052%
  • Graduate42048%

Undergraduates by gender

460undergrads
  • Women22348%
  • Men23752%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White28%
  • Black18%
  • Hispanic12%
  • Asian2.0%
  • Other or multiracial40%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
460
Graduate enrollment
420
Student–faculty ratio
17 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
37%
First-generation students
33%
Students over 25
19%
Median family income
$32,421
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$48,663
Endowment
$386,000

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

Admissions

Admission rate
39.5%
Test scores
Not considered
SAT range (25th–75th %)
SAT average
SAT reading
SAT math
ACT composite

Cost

In-state tuition
$17,575
Room & board
$12,400
Books & supplies
$2,600
Total cost of attendance
$32,680
Average net price
$20,828

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)
22%
Graduated on time (4 years)
19%
First-year retention
56%
Transferred to another college
17%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$30,657
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$32,864
Median debt at graduation
$20,287
Students with federal loans
45%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
63%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
19%
First-generation
41%

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
225
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
49%
Application fee
$25
Athletics
NAIA Division I
Varsity athletes
259 (181 men · 78 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 (5)

Basketball77
Baseball69
Soccer58
Volleyball32
Softball23

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

Campus safety

Safety grade
A
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
0.4 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
0
Property offenses (2022–2024)
1

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (880 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.

0.3reported offenses a year
0 violent a year0.3 property a year

By offense type, per year

Motor vehicle theft
0.3

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
$17,738
$30–48k
$17,560
$48–75k
$22,993
$75–110k
$23,597
$110k+
$24,152

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
$95,573

$22,993/year × about 4.2 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.

99%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$9,091
average award, among those who get one

A meaningful share of freshmen — 99% — get grant money from Carolina University itself, averaging $9,091, which softens the sticker price.

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 82 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)
$32,864
Typical debt at graduation
$20,287
Debt vs. one year's pay
62%
Out-earn a HS grad
46%

Typical debt would take roughly 6.2 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
$22,514
Men
$45,077

Men out-earn women by $22,563 (100%) 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
31°F
Annual rain
43.2″
Annual snow
3.3″

Average temperature

HighLow
20°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.34.5JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Winston Salem Rynlds AP, NC US station (3.5 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 Carolina University

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

Colleges near Carolina 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.