Private nonprofit · University
Gannon University
Erie, Pennsylvania · Small city
- 74.2%
- Admit rate
- $22,553
- Avg net price
- 66%
- Graduation rate
- $58,845
- Median earnings
Gannon University is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Erie, Pennsylvania (small city setting), enrolling 2,365 undergraduates. It has a Roman Catholic religious affiliation.
About Erie, Pennsylvania
Erie is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. Sommerheim Park Archaeological District in Millcreek Township, west of the city, includes artifacts from the Archaic period in the Americas and the early and middle Woodland Period, roughly a span from 8,000 BCE to 500 CE. The Erie Art Museum is the city's main art gallery, located in the Old Customshouse on State Street. Its collection has an emphasis on folk art and modern art, and it hosts a popular blues and jazz concert series. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Small city
- Highest degree offered
- Graduate
- Nearest big city
- Erie, PA
- To Great Lakes shore
- 1 mile
- Nearest airport
- 5 miles to Erie International Tom Ridge Field (ERI)
How Gannon University compares
More selective than 56% · #35 most selective of 111 in Pennsylvania
Higher than 71% · #45 of 116 in Pennsylvania
Higher than 50%
Higher than 65% · #70 of 116 in Pennsylvania
Cheaper than 38% · #50 cheapest of 112 in Pennsylvania
Lower than 11%
Lower than 68%
Larger than 62%
Percentiles compare Gannon University with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Pennsylvania.
Student body
Undergraduate vs. graduate
- Undergraduate2,36562%
- Graduate1,42138%
Undergraduates by gender
- Women1,47562%
- Men89038%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White61%
- Black6.0%
- Hispanic5.5%
- Asian2.5%
- Other or multiracial25%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 2,365
- Graduate enrollment
- 1,421
- Student–faculty ratio
- 11 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 24%
- First-generation students
- 26%
- Students over 25
- 3%
- Median family income
- $70,028
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $78,597
- Endowment
- $82,842,000
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 619 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.
- From Pennsylvania57%
- Other U.S. states27%
- International16%
A regional draw: about 56% of first-years come from Pennsylvania, the rest from elsewhere.
16% 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
- 74.2%
- Test scores
- Not considered
- SAT range (25th–75th %)
- —
- SAT average
- —
- SAT reading
- —
- SAT math
- —
- ACT composite
- —
Cost
- In-state tuition
- $40,656
- Room & board
- $15,960
- Books & supplies
- $1,246
- Total cost of attendance
- $52,869
- Average net price
- $22,553
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)
- 66%
- Graduated on time (4 years)
- 53%
- First-year retention
- 76%
- Transferred to another college
- 19%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $55,319
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $58,845
- Median debt at graduation
- $27,000
- Students with federal loans
- 64%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 63%
About 13% 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)
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
- 1,522
- Dorm capacity vs undergrads
- 64%
- Housing charge (year)
- $8,130
- Meal plan (year)
- $7,480
- Application fee
- Free
- Athletics
- NCAA Division II with football
- Football conference
- Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference
- Varsity athletes
- 653 (341 men · 312 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 (14)
Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.
Campus safety
- Safety grade
- B
- Reported offenses per 1,000 students
- 1.0 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 10
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 3
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 2 campuses (4,189 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.
$20,352/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.
Gannon University discounts heavily: 82% of freshmen are awarded a grant straight from the school, averaging $24,458. 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 639 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)
- $58,845
- Typical debt at graduation
- $27,000
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 46%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 69%
Typical debt would take roughly 4.6 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 $5,826 (10%) 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
- 81°F
- Winter low
- 21°F
- Annual rain
- 43″
- Annual snow
- 104.3″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Erie Intl AP, PA US station (5.9 mi from campus).
What Gannon 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 Gannon University
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Gannon University side by side →
North Central College
Naperville, Illinois · Midsize city · 27 mi to Chicago
- Students
- 2,428
- Admission
- 77%
- Net price
- $21k
- SAT
- 1213
- GPA
- 3.5
- Earnings
- $60k
Barry University
Miami, Florida · Large suburb · 8 mi to Miami
- Students
- 2,212
- Admission
- 77%
- Net price
- $23k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $56k
Elmhurst University
Elmhurst, Illinois · Large suburb · 16 mi to Chicago
- Students
- 3,006
- Admission
- 74%
- Net price
- $24k
- SAT
- 1151
- GPA
- 3.3
- Earnings
- $61k
Saint Ambrose University
Davenport, Iowa · Midsize city · 64 mi to Cedar Rapids
- Students
- 1,916
- Admission
- 77%
- Net price
- $25k
- SAT
- 1093
- GPA
- 3.2
- Earnings
- $60k
Calvin University
Grand Rapids, Michigan · Midsize city · 5 mi to Grand Rapids
- Students
- 3,193
- Admission
- 71%
- Net price
- $23k
- SAT
- 1233
- GPA
- 3.5
- Earnings
- $58k
McKendree University
Lebanon, Illinois · Large suburb · 21 mi to St. Louis
- Students
- 1,752
- Admission
- 72%
- Net price
- $25k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $59k
Colleges near Gannon University
Mercyhurst University
Erie, PA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 2,191 students
Great Lakes Institute of Technology
Erie, PA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 335 students
Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine
Erie, PA · Private nonprofit · Certificate · 4 students
Erie Institute of Technology Inc
Erie, PA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 221 students
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Erie-Behrend College
Erie, PA · Public · Bachelor's · 3,240 students
Allegheny College
Meadville, PA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,156 students
University of Pittsburgh-Titusville
Titusville, PA · Public · Associate · 33 students
Kent State University at Ashtabula
Ashtabula, OH · Public · Associate · 1,290 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.














