Private nonprofit · University
Rivier University
Nashua, New Hampshire · Small city
- 82.6%
- Admit rate
- $28,082
- Avg net price
- 52%
- Graduation rate
- $52,248
- Median earnings
Rivier University is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Nashua, New Hampshire (small city setting), enrolling 1,231 undergraduates. It has a Roman Catholic religious affiliation.
Will you get in?
See where your numbers land against Rivier University's admitted students.
- Admit rate
- 82.6%
- SAT (mid 50%)
- 1055–1175
- Avg GPA (est.)
- 3.09
Enter a test score to see where you land against Rivier University's admitted students.
A guide, not a prediction. It compares your numbers with the middle 50% of admitted students and Rivier University's overall admit rate — it can't see essays, recommendations, activities, or your intended major, which all move real decisions.
About Nashua, New Hampshire
Nashua is a city in southern New Hampshire, United States. Located at the confluence of the Nashua and Merrimack rivers, Dunstable was first settled about 1654 as a fur trading town. Nashua lies approximately in the center of the original 1673 grant. In the American version of The Office, a branch of the fictional paper company Dunder Mifflin is located in Nashua and features in several episodes. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Small city
- Highest degree offered
- Graduate
- Nearest big city
- 18 miles to Manchester, NH
- To the ocean
- 31 miles
- Nearest airport
- 13 miles to Manchester-Boston (MHT)
How Rivier University compares
More selective than 40% · #5 most selective of 11 in New Hampshire
Higher than 20%
Higher than 43% · #9 of 13 in New Hampshire
Higher than 48%
Higher than 45% · #11 of 15 in New Hampshire
Cheaper than 20% · #10 cheapest of 13 in New Hampshire
Lower than 17%
Lower than 42%
Larger than 44%
Percentiles compare Rivier University with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in New Hampshire.
Student body
Undergraduate vs. graduate
- Undergraduate1,23145%
- Graduate1,52555%
Undergraduates by gender
- Women94377%
- Men28823%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White72%
- Black9.5%
- Hispanic7.4%
- Asian3.9%
- Other or multiracial7.0%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 1,231
- Graduate enrollment
- 1,525
- Student–faculty ratio
- 14 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 28%
- First-generation students
- 37%
- Students over 25
- 25%
- Median family income
- $62,990
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $73,566
- Endowment
- $41,495,760
Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.
Admissions
- Admission rate
- 82.6%
- Test scores
- Considered but not required
- SAT range (25th–75th %)
- 1055–1175
- SAT average
- 1070
- SAT reading
- 545–590
- SAT math
- 510–585
- ACT composite
- —
- Average GPA (estimated)
- 3.09
Cost
- In-state tuition
- $39,488
- Room & board
- $15,636
- Books & supplies
- $1,400
- Total cost of attendance
- $53,499
- Average net price
- $28,082
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)
- 52%
- Graduated on time (4 years)
- 45%
- First-year retention
- 76%
- Transferred to another college
- 0%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $54,599
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $52,248
- Median debt at graduation
- $26,956
- Students with federal loans
- 70%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 63%
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
- 495
- Dorm capacity vs undergrads
- 40%
- Housing charge (year)
- $8,604
- Meal plan (year)
- $6,856
- Application fee
- Free
- Athletics
- NCAA Division III without football
- Varsity athletes
- 334 (184 men · 150 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)
Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.
Campus safety
- Safety grade
- B
- Reported offenses per 1,000 students
- 0.7 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 5
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 1
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (2,777 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.
$25,106/year × about 4.2 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.
Rivier University discounts heavily: 98% of freshmen are awarded a grant straight from the school, averaging $20,455. 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 269 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)
- $52,248
- Typical debt at graduation
- $26,956
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 52%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 73%
Typical debt would take roughly 5.2 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 $12,152 (27%) 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
- 85°F
- Winter low
- 14°F
- Annual rain
- 46.2″
- Annual snow
- 66.8″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Nashua Cwsu, NH US station (1.3 mi from campus).
What Rivier 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 Rivier University
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Rivier University side by side →
Lasell University
Newton, Massachusetts · Small city · 10 mi to Boston
- Students
- 1,226
- Admission
- 81%
- Net price
- $28k
- SAT
- 1100
- GPA
- 3.2
- Earnings
- $50k
McPherson College
McPherson, Kansas · Remote town · 50 mi to Wichita
- Students
- 872
- Admission
- 77%
- Net price
- $26k
- SAT
- 1058
- GPA
- 3.1
- Earnings
- $52k
Anderson University
Anderson, Indiana · Small city · 35 mi to Indianapolis
- Students
- 1,057
- Admission
- 79%
- Net price
- $25k
- SAT
- 1035
- GPA
- 3.0
- Earnings
- $49k
Chaminade University of Honolulu
Honolulu, Hawaii · Large city · 3 mi to Honolulu
- Students
- 1,672
- Admission
- 91%
- Net price
- $29k
- SAT
- 1060
- GPA
- 3.0
- Earnings
- $52k
University of Mount Union
Alliance, Ohio · Fringe town · 25 mi to Akron
- Students
- 1,995
- Admission
- 78%
- Net price
- $23k
- SAT
- 1088
- GPA
- 3.1
- Earnings
- $53k
Flagler College
Saint Augustine, Florida · Small suburb · 37 mi to Jacksonville
- Students
- 2,391
- Admission
- 81%
- Net price
- $31k
- SAT
- 1084
- GPA
- 3.1
- Earnings
- $49k
Colleges near Rivier University
St Joseph School of Nursing
Nashua, NH · Private nonprofit · Associate · 93 students
Harmony Health Care Institute
Merrimack, NH · Private for-profit · Certificate · 153 students
Thomas More College of Liberal Arts
Merrimack, NH · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 97 students
Nashua Community College
Nashua, NH · Public · Associate · 1,135 students
Greater Lowell Technical School
Tyngsboro, MA · Public · Certificate · 80 students
University of Massachusetts-Lowell
Lowell, MA · Public · Bachelor's · 11,434 students
Lowell Academy Hairstyling Institute
Lowell, MA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 66 students
Massachusetts School of Law
Andover, MA · Private nonprofit · Graduate
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.











