Private nonprofit · College

Lyon College

Batesville, Arkansas · Remote town

#5 most selective in Arkansas
62.8%
Admit rate
$19,616
Avg net price
47%
Graduation rate
$44,232
Median earnings

Lyon College is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Batesville, Arkansas (remote town setting), enrolling 648 undergraduates. It has a Presbyterian Church (USA) religious affiliation.

Private nonprofitSmall · 648 undergradsRemote townAccessible · 63% admitNCAA Division III with football · Southern Collegiate Athletic ConferenceCold winters

About Batesville, Arkansas

Batesville is the largest city in and the county seat of Independence County, Arkansas, United States, 80 miles (128 km) northeast of Little Rock, the state capital. Batesville is the second oldest municipality after the town of Georgetown — and the oldest city — in the state of Arkansas. It was named for the first territorial delegate from Arkansas to the Congress of the United States, James Woodson Bates, who settled in the town. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Remote town
Highest degree offered
Bachelor's
To the ocean
381 miles
Nearest airport
55 miles to Jonesboro (JBR)

How Lyon College compares

Selectivity62.8%

More selective than 73% · #5 most selective of 15 in Arkansas

Graduation rate47%

Higher than 33% · #10 of 21 in Arkansas

First-year retention71%

Higher than 34%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$44,232

Higher than 22% · #12 of 22 in Arkansas

Average net price$19,616

Cheaper than 52% · #15 cheapest of 21 in Arkansas

Median debt at graduation$21,500

Lower than 63%

Student–faculty ratio11 : 1

Lower than 68%

Undergraduate enrollment648

Larger than 26%

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

Student body

Undergraduate vs. graduate

650students
  • Undergraduate648100%
  • Graduate20%

Undergraduates by gender

648undergrads
  • Women28043%
  • Men36857%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White33%
  • Black7.4%
  • Hispanic6.5%
  • Asian1.4%
  • Other or multiracial51%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
648
Graduate enrollment
2
Student–faculty ratio
11 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
41%
First-generation students
30%
Students over 25
3%
Median family income
$51,394
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$57,024
Endowment
$97,328,611

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Admissions

Admission rate
62.8%
Test scores
Not considered
SAT range (25th–75th %)
SAT average
SAT reading
SAT math
ACT composite

Cost

In-state tuition
$31,000
Room & board
$10,750
Books & supplies
$1,500
Total cost of attendance
$44,978
Average net price
$19,616

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)
38%
First-year retention
71%
Transferred to another college
0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$37,629
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$44,232
Median debt at graduation
$21,500
Students with federal loans
64%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
69%

About 8% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing
Yes
Dorm capacity
436
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
67%
Housing charge (year)
$5,770
Meal plan (year)
$5,760
Application fee
Free
Athletics
NCAA Division III with football
Football conference
Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference
Varsity athletes
464 (316 men · 148 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)

Football113
Soccer69
Baseball52
Basketball48
Track and Field (Outdoor)41
Track and Field (Indoor)39
Softball30
Volleyball21
Cross Country18
Golf17
Wrestling16

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

Campus safety

Safety grade
D
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
6.1 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
10
Property offenses (2022–2024)
2

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (659 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.

4.0reported offenses a year
3.3 violent a year0.7 property a year

By offense type, per year

Rape
2.3
Aggravated assault
1.0
Burglary
0.7

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
$16,084
$30–48k
$16,695
$48–75k
$17,348
$75–110k
$20,936
$110k+
$23,391

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
$74,028

$17,348/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.

100%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$18,548
average award, among those who get one

Lyon College discounts heavily: 100% of freshmen are awarded a grant straight from the school, averaging $18,548. 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 144 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)
$44,232
Typical debt at graduation
$21,500
Debt vs. one year's pay
49%
Out-earn a HS grad
55%

Typical debt would take roughly 4.9 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
$39,890
Men
$47,806

Men out-earn women by $7,916 (20%) 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
91°F
Winter low
28°F
Annual rain
50.8″
Annual snow
2.2″

Average temperature

HighLow
20°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.85.6JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Batesville L&D 1, AR US station (1.5 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 Lyon College

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

Colleges near Lyon 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.