Private nonprofit · University
Morningside University
Sioux City, Iowa · Small city
- 71.0%
- Admit rate
- $31,320
- Avg net price
- 50%
- Graduation rate
- $55,494
- Median earnings
Morningside University is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Sioux City, Iowa (small city setting), enrolling 1,163 undergraduates. It has a United Methodist religious affiliation.
About Sioux City, Iowa
Sioux City is a city in Woodbury and Plymouth counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. Iowa is in the tallgrass prairie of the North American Great Plains, historically inhabited by speakers of Siouan languages. The Sioux City Public Museum was originally located in a Northside neighborhood of fine Victorian mansions. The portico-and-gabled stone building was originally the home of the banker, John Peirce, and was built in 1890. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Small city
- Highest degree offered
- Graduate
- Nearest big city
- 76 miles to Sioux Falls, SD
- To Great Lakes shore
- 362 miles
- Nearest airport
- 5 miles to Sioux Gateway Airport / Brigadier General Bud Day Field (SUX)
How Morningside University compares
More selective than 62% · #7 most selective of 28 in Iowa
Higher than 40% · #23 of 30 in Iowa
Higher than 43%
Higher than 55% · #15 of 31 in Iowa
Cheaper than 13% · #28 cheapest of 29 in Iowa
Lower than 22%
Lower than 59%
Larger than 42%
Percentiles compare Morningside University with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in Iowa.
Student body
Undergraduate vs. graduate
- Undergraduate1,16357%
- Graduate88443%
Undergraduates by gender
- Women67258%
- Men49142%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White54%
- Black3.6%
- Hispanic10%
- Asian0.9%
- Other or multiracial31%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 1,163
- Graduate enrollment
- 884
- Student–faculty ratio
- 12 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 34%
- First-generation students
- 23%
- Students over 25
- 6%
- Median family income
- $71,162
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $67,842
- Endowment
- $64,301,016
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 337 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.
- From Iowa48%
- Other U.S. states45%
- International8.0%
A regional draw: about 48% of first-years come from Iowa, the rest from elsewhere.
8% 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
- 71.0%
- Test scores
- Considered but not required
- SAT range (25th–75th %)
- —
- SAT average
- —
- SAT reading
- —
- SAT math
- —
- ACT composite
- —
Cost
- In-state tuition
- $39,660
- Room & board
- $11,650
- Books & supplies
- $1,200
- Total cost of attendance
- $52,577
- Average net price
- $31,320
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)
- 50%
- Graduated on time (4 years)
- 41%
- First-year retention
- 74%
- Transferred to another college
- 10%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $47,687
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $55,494
- Median debt at graduation
- $26,028
- Students with federal loans
- 66%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 71%
About 9% 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
- 860
- Dorm capacity vs undergrads
- 74%
- Housing charge (year)
- $6,040
- Meal plan (year)
- $5,164
- Application fee
- Free
- Athletics
- NAIA Division I
- Football conference
- Great Plains Athletic Conference
- Varsity athletes
- 730 (480 men · 250 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 (12)
Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.
Campus safety
- Safety grade
- B
- Reported offenses per 1,000 students
- 1.8 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 1
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 10
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (2,056 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.
$19,124/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.
Morningside University discounts heavily: 100% of freshmen are awarded a grant straight from the school, averaging $22,402. 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 346 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)
- $55,494
- Typical debt at graduation
- $26,028
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 47%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 72%
Typical debt would take roughly 4.7 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 $12,836 (26%) 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
- 86°F
- Winter low
- 9°F
- Annual rain
- 30.3″
- Annual snow
- 36″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Sioux City Ang, IA US station (5.4 mi from campus).
What Morningside 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 Morningside University
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Morningside University side by side →
Southwestern College
Winfield, Kansas · Distant town · 36 mi to Wichita
- Students
- 924
- Admission
- 76%
- Net price
- $30k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $56k
Arizona Christian University
Glendale, Arizona · Large suburb · 14 mi to Phoenix
- Students
- 1,165
- Admission
- 71%
- Net price
- $33k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $52k
Wartburg College
Waverly, Iowa · Distant town · 67 mi to Cedar Rapids
- Students
- 1,452
- Admission
- 76%
- Net price
- $33k
- SAT
- 1136
- GPA
- 3.3
- Earnings
- $56k
Regis College
Weston, Massachusetts · Large suburb · 13 mi to Boston
- Students
- 956
- Admission
- 70%
- Net price
- $27k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $53k
Concordia University Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, Michigan · Midsize city · 33 mi to Detroit
- Students
- 702
- Admission
- 69%
- Net price
- $33k
- SAT
- —
- GPA
- —
- Earnings
- $56k
Alfred University
Alfred, New York · Distant rural · 63 mi to Rochester
- Students
- 1,423
- Admission
- 74%
- Net price
- $26k
- SAT
- 1279
- GPA
- 3.6
- Earnings
- $55k
Colleges near Morningside University
Western Iowa Tech Community College
Sioux City, IA · Public · Certificate · 2,647 students
Iowa School of Beauty-Sioux City
Sioux City, IA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 67 students
St Luke's College
Sioux City, IA · Private nonprofit · Associate · 167 students
Briar Cliff University
Sioux City, IA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 624 students
Little Priest Tribal College
Winnebago, NE · Public · Associate · 182 students
Nebraska Indian Community College
Macy, NE · Public · Associate · 327 students
University of South Dakota
Vermillion, SD · Public · Bachelor's · 5,439 students
Wayne State College
Wayne, NE · Public · Bachelor's · 3,010 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.












