Private nonprofit · College

Kentucky Wesleyan College

Owensboro, Kentucky · Small city

71.6%
Admit rate
$17,131
Avg net price
47%
Graduation rate
$46,747
Median earnings

Kentucky Wesleyan College is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Owensboro, Kentucky (small city setting), enrolling 842 undergraduates. It has a United Methodist religious affiliation.

Private nonprofitSmall · 842 undergradsSmall cityAccessible · 72% admitNCAA Division II with football · Great Midwest Athletic ConferenceCold winters

Will you get in?

See where your numbers land against Kentucky Wesleyan College's admitted students.

Admit rate
71.6%
SAT (mid 50%)
890–1130
Avg GPA (est.)
3.04

Enter a test score to see where you land against Kentucky Wesleyan College's admitted students.

A guide, not a prediction. It compares your numbers with the middle 50% of admitted students and Kentucky Wesleyan College's overall admit rate — it can't see essays, recommendations, activities, or your intended major, which all move real decisions.

About Owensboro, Kentucky

Owensboro is a city in Daviess County, Kentucky, United States, of which it is also the county seat. Following a series of failed uprisings with British support, however, the last Shawnee were forced to vacate the area before the end of the 18th century. Owensboro was named an All-America City in 2013. Owensboro placed fourth on Area Development's Top 20 Southern Cities, with a 9th-place ranking for its "recession busting factors" among the Top 25 Small Cities. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Small city
Highest degree offered
Bachelor's
To Great Lakes shore
268 miles
Nearest airport
3 miles to Owensboro Daviess County (OWB)

How Kentucky Wesleyan College compares

Selectivity71.6%

More selective than 61% · #9 most selective of 26 in Kentucky

SAT average1044

Higher than 14%

Graduation rate47%

Higher than 33% · #19 of 30 in Kentucky

First-year retention53%

Higher than 7%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$46,747

Higher than 29% · #12 of 29 in Kentucky

Average net price$17,131

Cheaper than 63% · #14 cheapest of 29 in Kentucky

Median debt at graduation$23,250

Lower than 50%

Student–faculty ratio15 : 1

Lower than 35%

Undergraduate enrollment842

Larger than 33%

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

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

842undergrads
  • Women38345%
  • Men45955%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White57%
  • Black16%
  • Hispanic3.1%
  • Asian2.6%
  • Other or multiracial21%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
842
Student–faculty ratio
15 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
50%
First-generation students
38%
Students over 25
10%
Median family income
$47,140
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$57,177
Endowment
$37,590,851

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 234 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Kentucky71%
  • Other U.S. states29%

Most first-years stay in state — Kentucky Wesleyan College draws overwhelmingly from Kentucky.

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
71.6%
Test scores
Considered but not required
SAT range (25th–75th %)
890–1130
SAT average
1044
SAT reading
440–560
SAT math
450–570
ACT composite
16–23
Average GPA (estimated)
3.04

Cost

In-state tuition
$34,673
Room & board
$11,855
Books & supplies
$1,298
Total cost of attendance
$46,203
Average net price
$17,131

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)
47%
Graduated on time (4 years)
31%
First-year retention
53%
Transferred to another college
30%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$35,895
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$46,747
Median debt at graduation
$23,250
Students with federal loans
61%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
52%

About 15% 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
31%
Low-income (Pell)
47%
First-generation
48%

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
499
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
59%
Application fee
Free
Athletics
NCAA Division II with football
Football conference
Great Midwest Athletic Conference
Varsity athletes
364 (267 men · 97 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 (9)

Football112
Soccer80
Baseball48
Basketball29
Golf25
Wrestling22
Softball17
Volleyball17
Tennis14

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

Campus safety

Safety grade
D
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
6.0 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
2
Property offenses (2022–2024)
14

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (887 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
0.7 violent a year4.7 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary
3.7
Motor vehicle theft
1.0
Rape
0.3
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
$13,951
$30–48k
$13,701
$48–75k
$15,062
$75–110k
$19,306
$110k+
$22,888

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
$67,668

$15,062/year × about 4.5 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.

95%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$17,450
average award, among those who get one

A meaningful share of freshmen — 95% — get grant money from Kentucky Wesleyan College itself, averaging $17,450, 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 222 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)
$46,747
Typical debt at graduation
$23,250
Debt vs. one year's pay
50%
Out-earn a HS grad
53%

Typical debt would take roughly 5.0 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Solid value

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.

Women
$41,591
Men
$50,840

Men out-earn women by $9,249 (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
87°F
Winter low
26°F
Annual rain
45.6″
Annual snow
4.3″

Average temperature

HighLow
20°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.34.6JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Calhoun Lock 2, KY US station (16.8 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 Kentucky Wesleyan College

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

Colleges near Kentucky Wesleyan 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.