Private nonprofit · College

Ferrum College

Ferrum, Virginia · Distant rural

89.0%
Admit rate
$20,082
Avg net price
32%
Graduation rate
$44,296
Median earnings

Ferrum College is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Ferrum, Virginia (distant rural setting), enrolling 699 undergraduates. It has a United Methodist religious affiliation.

Private nonprofitSmall · 699 undergradsDistant ruralAccessible · 89% admitNCAA Division III with football · Old Dominion Athletic ConferenceCold winters

About Ferrum, Virginia

Ferrum is a census-designated place in Franklin County, Virginia, United States. Ferrum is home to Ferrum College and its Blue Ridge Folklife Festival. It is part of the Roanoke metropolitan area. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Distant rural
Highest degree offered
Graduate
Nearest big city
24 miles to Roanoke, VA
To the ocean
154 miles
Nearest airport
28 miles to Roanoke–Blacksburg (ROA)

How Ferrum College compares

Selectivity89.0%

More selective than 26% · #29 most selective of 43 in Virginia

Graduation rate32%

Higher than 13% · #46 of 49 in Virginia

First-year retention64%

Higher than 18%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$44,296

Higher than 22% · #42 of 51 in Virginia

Average net price$20,082

Cheaper than 50% · #19 cheapest of 47 in Virginia

Median debt at graduation$27,000

Lower than 11%

Student–faculty ratio11 : 1

Lower than 68%

Undergraduate enrollment699

Larger than 27%

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

Student body

Undergraduate vs. graduate

738students
  • Undergraduate69995%
  • Graduate395%

Undergraduates by gender

699undergrads
  • Women27740%
  • Men42260%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White49%
  • Black21%
  • Hispanic6.2%
  • Asian0.7%
  • Other or multiracial23%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
699
Graduate enrollment
39
Student–faculty ratio
11 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
54%
First-generation students
39%
Students over 25
3%
Median family income
$35,818
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$51,867
Endowment
$60,295,089

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 239 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Virginia68%
  • Other U.S. states32%

A regional draw: about 68% of first-years come from Virginia, the rest from elsewhere.

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
89.0%
Test scores
Considered but not required
SAT range (25th–75th %)
SAT average
SAT reading
SAT math
ACT composite

Cost

In-state tuition
$28,520
Room & board
$13,230
Books & supplies
$1,000
Total cost of attendance
$54,526
Average net price
$20,082

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)
32%
Graduated on time (4 years)
24%
First-year retention
64%
Transferred to another college
37%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$36,418
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$44,296
Median debt at graduation
$27,000
Students with federal loans
85%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
41%

About 8% 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
24%
Low-income (Pell)
27%
First-generation
28%

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
1,293
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
100%+
Application fee
$25
Athletics
NCAA Division III with football
Football conference
Old Dominion Athletic Conference
Varsity athletes
441 (318 men · 123 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 (12)

Football115
Track and Field and Cross Country (combined)69
Soccer61
Baseball60
Basketball36
Wrestling24
Softball20
Volleyball20
Lacrosse14
Golf9
Tennis8
Equestrian5

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

Campus safety

Safety grade
D
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
7.0 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
7
Property offenses (2022–2024)
9

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (763 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.

5.3reported offenses a year
2.3 violent a year3.0 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary
3.0
Rape
1.3
Fondling
0.7
Aggravated assault
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
$16,940
$30–48k
$16,493
$48–75k
$19,967
$75–110k
$22,505
$110k+
$24,346

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
$87,473

$19,967/year × about 4.4 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.

100%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$26,649
average award, among those who get one

Ferrum College discounts heavily: 100% of freshmen are awarded a grant straight from the school, averaging $26,649. 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 187 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)
$44,296
Typical debt at graduation
$27,000
Debt vs. one year's pay
61%
Out-earn a HS grad
44%

Typical debt would take roughly 6.1 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
$39,453
Men
$48,381

Men out-earn women by $8,928 (23%) 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
87°F
Winter low
26°F
Annual rain
49.2″
Annual snow
12.6″

Average temperature

HighLow
20°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.55.0JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Rocky MT, VA US station (7.7 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 Ferrum College

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

Colleges near Ferrum College

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.