Private nonprofit · University
Dordt University
Sioux Center, Iowa · Remote town
- 68.5%
- Admit rate
- $25,807
- Avg net price
- 70%
- Graduation rate
- $52,559
- Median earnings
Dordt University is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Sioux Center, Iowa (remote town setting), enrolling 1,597 undergraduates. It has a Christian Reformed Church religious affiliation.
Will you get in?
See where your numbers land against Dordt University's admitted students.
- Admit rate
- 68.5%
- SAT (mid 50%)
- 1070–1330
- Avg GPA (est.)
- 3.50
Enter a test score to see where you land against Dordt University's admitted students.
A guide, not a prediction. It compares your numbers with the middle 50% of admitted students and Dordt University's overall admit rate — it can't see essays, recommendations, activities, or your intended major, which all move real decisions.
About Sioux Center, Iowa
Sioux Center is a city in Sioux County, Iowa. Sioux Center is home to the Northwest Iowa Symphony Orchestra. Their concert hall is the Dordt University chapel known as the B.J. Haan Auditorium. The orchestra is composed mostly of volunteers from the NW corner of Iowa. Some of the principals are paid positions. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Remote town
- Highest degree offered
- Graduate
- Nearest big city
- 43 miles to Sioux Falls, SD
- To Great Lakes shore
- 322 miles
- Nearest airport
- 45 miles to Sioux Falls (FSD)
How Dordt University compares
More selective than 66% · #6 most selective of 28 in Iowa
Higher than 65%
Higher than 78% · #7 of 30 in Iowa
Higher than 75%
Higher than 46% · #23 of 31 in Iowa
Cheaper than 26% · #24 cheapest of 29 in Iowa
Lower than 63%
Lower than 42%
Larger than 51%
Percentiles compare Dordt University with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Iowa.
Student body
Undergraduate vs. graduate
- Undergraduate1,59787%
- Graduate23613%
Undergraduates by gender
- Women77048%
- Men82752%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White81%
- Black0.6%
- Hispanic2.3%
- Asian0.9%
- Other or multiracial15%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 1,597
- Graduate enrollment
- 236
- Student–faculty ratio
- 14 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 20%
- First-generation students
- 12%
- Students over 25
- 1%
- Median family income
- $83,534
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $65,259
- Endowment
- $74,792,440
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 461 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.
- From Iowa32%
- Other U.S. states60%
- International7.5%
A national draw — only 32% of first-years come from Iowa; 60% arrive from other states.
7% 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
- 68.5%
- Test scores
- Considered but not required
- SAT range (25th–75th %)
- 1070–1330
- SAT average
- 1221
- SAT reading
- 540–670
- SAT math
- 530–660
- ACT composite
- 21–29
- Average GPA (estimated)
- 3.50
Cost
- In-state tuition
- $37,050
- Room & board
- $11,770
- Books & supplies
- $1,080
- Total cost of attendance
- $51,733
- Average net price
- $25,807
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)
- 70%
- Graduated on time (4 years)
- 67%
- First-year retention
- 85%
- Transferred to another college
- 0%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $50,551
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $52,559
- Median debt at graduation
- $21,500
- Students with federal loans
- 41%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 88%
Graduating on time
By student background (4 years)
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
- 1,509
- Dorm capacity vs undergrads
- 94%
- Application fee
- Free
- Athletics
- NAIA Division II
- Football conference
- Great Plains Athletic Conference
- Varsity athletes
- 781 (454 men · 327 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 (11)
Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.
Campus safety
- Safety grade
- A
- Reported offenses per 1,000 students
- 0.2 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 1
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 0
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (1,952 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.
By offense type, per year
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.
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.
$24,079/year × about 4.1 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.
Dordt University discounts heavily: 99% of freshmen are awarded a grant straight from the school, averaging $19,674. 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 438 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)
- $52,559
- Typical debt at graduation
- $21,500
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 41%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 68%
Typical debt would take roughly 4.1 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.
A reasonable return: earnings comfortably clear the debt over a few years for most students who finish.
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.
Men out-earn women by $19,817 (48%) 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
- 85°F
- Winter low
- 9°F
- Annual rain
- 29.9″
- Annual snow
- 34.8″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Sioux Ctr 2 SE, IA US station (2 mi from campus).
What Dordt University graduates study — and earn
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 Dordt University
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Dordt University side by side →
Ouachita Baptist University
Arkadelphia, Arkansas · Distant town · 61 mi to Little Rock
- Students
- 1,602
- Admission
- 68%
- Net price
- $22k
- SAT
- 1211
- GPA
- 3.5
- Earnings
- $52k
Taylor University
Upland, Indiana · Distant rural · 47 mi to Fort Wayne
- Students
- 2,025
- Admission
- 74%
- Net price
- $25k
- SAT
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- GPA
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- Earnings
- $52k
Berry College
Mount Berry, Georgia · Small suburb · 53 mi to Chattanooga
- Students
- 2,245
- Admission
- 64%
- Net price
- $22k
- SAT
- 1220
- GPA
- 3.5
- Earnings
- $54k
Caldwell University
Caldwell, New Jersey · Large suburb · 16 mi to New York
- Students
- 1,575
- Admission
- 71%
- Net price
- $25k
- SAT
- 1260
- GPA
- 3.6
- Earnings
- $54k
Meredith College
Raleigh, North Carolina · Large city · 3 mi to Raleigh
- Students
- 1,188
- Admission
- 74%
- Net price
- $22k
- SAT
- 1204
- GPA
- 3.5
- Earnings
- $52k
Gordon College
Wenham, Massachusetts · Fringe rural · 20 mi to Boston
- Students
- 1,278
- Admission
- 69%
- Net price
- $25k
- SAT
- 1265
- GPA
- 3.6
- Earnings
- $52k
Colleges near Dordt University
Northwestern College
Orange City, IA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,175 students
Northwest Iowa Community College
Sheldon, IA · Public · Associate · 864 students
Briar Cliff University
Sioux City, IA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 624 students
St Luke's College
Sioux City, IA · Private nonprofit · Associate · 167 students
Kairos University
Sioux Falls, SD · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 82 students
Augustana University
Sioux Falls, SD · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,965 students
University of Sioux Falls
Sioux Falls, SD · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,218 students
Western Iowa Tech Community College
Sioux City, IA · Public · Certificate · 2,647 students
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.














