Private nonprofit · University

Northwood University

Midland, Michigan · Small city

64.5%
Admit rate
$27,232
Avg net price
63%
Graduation rate
$63,075
Median earnings

Northwood University is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Midland, Michigan (small city setting), enrolling 1,974 undergraduates.

Private nonprofitSmall · 1,974 undergradsSmall cityAccessible · 65% admitNCAA Division II with football · Great Midwest Athletic ConferenceCold wintersSnowy

About Midland, Michigan

Midland is a city in the state of Michigan and is the county seat of Midland County. By the late 1820s, Midland was established as a fur trading post of the American Fur Company supervised by the post at Saginaw. Here agents purchased furs from Ojibwe trappers. The Campau family of Detroit operated an independent trading post at this location in the late 1820s. Midland has many cultural opportunities in fields ranging from music and theater to science and the arts. The Midland Center for the Arts delivers hands-on exhibits in science, art and technology, at the Alden B. Dow Museum of Science and Art. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Small city
Highest degree offered
Graduate
Nearest big city
63 miles to Lansing, MI
To Great Lakes shore
18 miles
Nearest airport
12 miles to MBS (MBS)

How Northwood University compares

Selectivity64.5%

More selective than 71% · #8 most selective of 43 in Michigan

Graduation rate63%

Higher than 66% · #16 of 44 in Michigan

First-year retention79%

Higher than 58%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$63,075

Higher than 73% · #11 of 45 in Michigan

Average net price$27,232

Cheaper than 23% · #38 cheapest of 44 in Michigan

Median debt at graduation$20,842

Lower than 69%

Student–faculty ratio14 : 1

Lower than 42%

Undergraduate enrollment1,974

Larger than 57%

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

Student body

Undergraduate vs. graduate

2,338students
  • Undergraduate1,97484%
  • Graduate36416%

Undergraduates by gender

1,974undergrads
  • Women95148%
  • Men1,02352%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White72%
  • Black8.8%
  • Hispanic7.6%
  • Asian1.1%
  • Other or multiracial10%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
1,974
Graduate enrollment
364
Student–faculty ratio
14 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
26%
First-generation students
40%
Students over 25
34%
Median family income
$42,219
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$79,560
Endowment
$122,890,733

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 341 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Michigan83%
  • Other U.S. states15%
  • International1.8%

Most first-years stay in state — Northwood University draws overwhelmingly from Michigan.

2% 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
64.5%
Test scores
Not considered
SAT range (25th–75th %)
SAT average
SAT reading
SAT math
ACT composite

Cost

In-state tuition
$34,400
Room & board
$13,100
Books & supplies
$810
Total cost of attendance
$48,780
Average net price
$27,232

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)
63%
Graduated on time (4 years)
50%
First-year retention
79%
Transferred to another college
0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$54,058
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$63,075
Median debt at graduation
$20,842
Students with federal loans
45%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
48%

About 13% 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
50%
Low-income (Pell)
53%
First-generation
56%

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
920
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
47%
Housing charge (year)
$6,400
Meal plan (year)
$6,100
Application fee
$30
Athletics
NCAA Division II with football
Football conference
Great Midwest Athletic Conference
Varsity athletes
568 (379 men · 189 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 (10)

Football137
Track and Field and Cross Country (combined)105
Soccer74
Lacrosse59
Baseball54
Softball42
Basketball35
Golf28
Tennis17
Volleyball17

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

Campus safety

Safety grade
A
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
0.1 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
1
Property offenses (2022–2024)
0

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (2,409 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.

0.3reported offenses a year
0.3 violent a year0 property a year

By offense type, per year

Rape
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
$25,700
$30–48k
$25,913
$48–75k
$25,906
$75–110k
$26,016
$110k+
$28,224

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
$111,682

$25,906/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
$17,871
average award, among those who get one

A meaningful share of freshmen — 100% — get grant money from Northwood University itself, averaging $17,871, 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 228 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)
$63,075
Typical debt at graduation
$20,842
Debt vs. one year's pay
33%
Out-earn a HS grad
72%

Typical debt would take roughly 3.3 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
$58,854
Men
$67,531

Men out-earn women by $8,677 (15%) 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
17°F
Annual rain
33.4″
Annual snow
49″

Average temperature

HighLow
10°50°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.01.93.7JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Midland, MI US station (4 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 Northwood University

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

Colleges near Northwood University

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.