Public · Community college
Kent State University at Salem
Salem, Ohio · Fringe rural
- 18%
- Transfer rate
- $13,799
- Avg net price
- 31%
- Grad / completion
- $45,388
- Median earnings
Kent State University at Salem is a public associate-granting institution in Salem, Ohio (fringe rural setting), enrolling 1,164 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.
About Salem, Ohio
Salem is a city in Columbiana County, Ohio, United States. Salem was founded by a New Jersey clockmaker, Zadok Street, and a Pennsylvanian potter, John Straughan, in 1806. The city was named after Salem, New Jersey, Street's native community. Two neighborhoods of the city are designated as National Register historic districts: the South Lincoln Avenue Historic District (designated 1993) and the Salem Downtown Historic District (designated 1995), which includes several of the town's monumental and architecturally distinctive homes and businesses. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Fringe rural
- Highest degree offered
- Bachelor's
- Nearest big city
- 19 miles to Youngstown, OH
- To Great Lakes shore
- 63 miles
- Nearest airport
- 32 miles to Akron Canton (CAK)
How Kent State University at Salem compares
Higher than 14% · #142 of 168 in Ohio
Higher than 9%
Higher than 84% · #34 of 157 in Ohio
Cheaper than 55% · #65 cheapest of 155 in Ohio
Lower than 2%
Lower than 9%
Larger than 75%
Percentiles compare Kent State University at Salem with the nation's 3,519 two-year and certificate schools, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count two-year and certificate schools in Ohio.
Student body
Undergraduates by gender
- Women74164%
- Men42336%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White81%
- Black8.6%
- Hispanic3.9%
- Asian0.8%
- Other or multiracial6.0%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 1,164
- Student–faculty ratio
- 26 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 33%
- First-generation students
- 36%
- Students over 25
- 21%
- Median family income
- $50,411
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $72,594
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 136 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.
- From Ohio99%
- Other U.S. states0.7%
Most first-years stay in state — Kent State University at Salem draws overwhelmingly from Ohio.
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.
Cost
- In-state tuition
- $7,492
- Out-of-state tuition
- $17,342
- Room & board
- —
- Books & supplies
- $800
- Total cost of attendance
- $18,446
- Average net price
- $13,799
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)
- 31%
- Graduated on time (4 years)
- 1%
- First-year retention
- 47%
- Transferred to another college
- 18%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $40,179
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $45,388
- Median debt at graduation
- $24,500
- Students with federal loans
- 40%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 41%
About 30% 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
- No
- Application fee
- $50
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%.
Campus safety
- Safety grade
- A
- Reported offenses per 1,000 students
- 0.0 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 0
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 0
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (1,633 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.
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.
$14,582/year × about 5.5 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.
Modest institutional aid: 39% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,767. Most of what lowers the price here is federal or state money, not the school's own funds.
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)
- $45,388
- Typical debt at graduation
- $24,500
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 54%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 57%
Typical debt would take roughly 5.4 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 $9,016 (22%) 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
- 82°F
- Winter low
- 19°F
- Annual rain
- 40.8″
- Annual snow
- 27.9″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Millport 4 NE, OH US station (6.6 mi from campus).
What Kent State University at Salem 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 Kent State University at Salem
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Kent State University at Salem side by side →
Kent State University at Ashtabula
Ashtabula, Ohio · Distant town · 42 mi to Erie
- Students
- 1,290
- Tuition
- $7k
- Transfer
- 24%
- Earnings
- $45k
Kent State University at East Liverpool
East Liverpool, Ohio · Fringe town · 33 mi to Pittsburgh
- Students
- 797
- Tuition
- $7k
- Transfer
- 18%
- Earnings
- $45k
Kent State University at Tuscarawas
New Philadelphia, Ohio · Distant town · 43 mi to Akron
- Students
- 1,654
- Tuition
- $7k
- Transfer
- 15%
- Earnings
- $45k
Kent State University at Geauga
Burton, Ohio · Distant rural · 29 mi to Cleveland
- Students
- 1,601
- Tuition
- $7k
- Transfer
- 22%
- Earnings
- $45k
Kent State University at Trumbull
Warren, Ohio · Fringe rural · 16 mi to Youngstown
- Students
- 1,629
- Tuition
- $7k
- Transfer
- 16%
- Earnings
- $45k
Bowling Green State University-Firelands
Huron, Ohio · Fringe rural · 47 mi to Cleveland
- Students
- 1,251
- Tuition
- $6k
- Transfer
- 50%
- Earnings
- $48k
Colleges near Kent State University at Salem
Allegheny Wesleyan College
Salem, OH · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 46 students
Columbiana County Career and Technical Center
Lisbon, OH · Public · Certificate · 144 students
Mahoning County Career and Technical Center
Canfield, OH · Public · Certificate · 80 students
Raphael's School of Beauty Culture Inc-Boardman
Boardman, OH · Private for-profit · Certificate · 129 students
University of Mount Union
Alliance, OH · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,995 students
Raphael's School of Beauty Culture Inc-Alliance
Alliance, OH · Private for-profit · Certificate · 339 students
East Ohio College
East Liverpool, OH · Private for-profit · Associate · 118 students
Choffin Career and Technical Center
Youngstown, OH · Public · Certificate · 50 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.












