Private nonprofit · College

Miles College

Fairfield, Alabama · Large suburb

#4 best value in Alabama
Admit rate
$14,271
Avg net price
16%
Graduation rate
$32,627
Median earnings

Miles College is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Fairfield, Alabama (large suburb setting), enrolling 1,155 undergraduates. It is a Historically Black College or University (HBCU). It has a Christian Methodist Episcopal religious affiliation.

Private nonprofitSmall · 1,155 undergradsLarge suburbNCAA Division II with football · Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

About Fairfield, Alabama

Fairfield is a city in western Jefferson County, Alabama, United States. Corey departed U.S. Steel under a cloud of scandal, and the town's name was later changed to the city in which his successor as president lived, Fairfield, Connecticut. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large suburb
Highest degree offered
Bachelor's
To the ocean
199 miles
Nearest airport
11 miles to Birmingham-Shuttlesworth (BHM) · major hub

How Miles College compares

Graduation rate16%

Higher than 4% · #26 of 29 in Alabama

First-year retention56%

Higher than 10%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$32,627

Higher than 4% · #29 of 30 in Alabama

Average net price$14,271

Cheaper than 75% · #4 cheapest of 27 in Alabama

Median debt at graduation$31,217

Lower than 3%

Student–faculty ratio12 : 1

Lower than 59%

Undergraduate enrollment1,155

Larger than 41%

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

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

1,155undergrads
  • Women53947%
  • Men61653%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White3.3%
  • Black93%
  • Hispanic2.0%
  • Other or multiracial1.4%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
1,155
Student–faculty ratio
12 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
72%
First-generation students
42%
Students over 25
14%
Median family income
$17,702
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$48,780
Endowment
$30,341,252

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

Cost

In-state tuition
$13,314
Room & board
$7,348
Books & supplies
$250
Total cost of attendance
$21,154
Average net price
$14,271

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)
16%
Graduated on time (4 years)
10%
First-year retention
56%
Transferred to another college
0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$25,822
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$32,627
Median debt at graduation
$31,217
Students with federal loans
73%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
10%

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing
Yes
Dorm capacity
882
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
76%
Housing charge (year)
$4,182
Meal plan (year)
$3,388
Application fee
Free
Athletics
NCAA Division II with football
Football conference
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Varsity athletes
274 (195 men · 79 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 (8)

Football99
Baseball49
Basketball33
Cross Country28
Softball22
Track and Field (Outdoor)16
Volleyball15
Golf12

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

Campus safety

Safety grade
D
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
10.2 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
8
Property offenses (2022–2024)
28

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (1,180 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.

12reported offenses a year
2.7 violent a year9.3 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary
9.0
Aggravated assault
2.0
Robbery
0.7
Motor vehicle theft
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
$13,907
$30–48k
$13,677
$48–75k
$16,747
$75–110k
$18,889
$110k+

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
$75,669

$16,747/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.

34%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$5,281
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 34% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $5,281. 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 296 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)
$32,627
Typical debt at graduation
$31,217
Debt vs. one year's pay
96%
Out-earn a HS grad
33%

Typical debt would take roughly 9.6 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
$30,015
Men
$34,313

Men out-earn women by $4,298 (14%) 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
92°F
Winter low
34°F
Annual rain
55.5″
Annual snow
1.2″

Average temperature

HighLow
20°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.75.4JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Bessemer 3 Wsw, AL US station (8.3 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 Miles College

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

Colleges near Miles 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.