Private nonprofit · College

Rust College

Holly Springs, Mississippi · Distant town

#3 best value in Mississippi#4 most selective in Mississippi
48.7%
Admit rate
$12,587
Avg net price
12%
Graduation rate
$32,275
Median earnings

Rust College is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Holly Springs, Mississippi (distant town setting), enrolling 467 undergraduates. It is a Historically Black College or University (HBCU). It has a United Methodist religious affiliation.

Private nonprofitSmall · 467 undergradsDistant townSelective · 49% admitNAIA Division ICold winters

About Holly Springs, Mississippi

Holly Springs is a city in and the county seat of Marshall County, Mississippi, United States, near the border with Tennessee to the north. European Americans founded Holly Springs in 1836 on territory occupied by the Chickasaw people for centuries before Indian Removal. Most of their land was ceded under the Treaty of Pontotoc Creek of 1832. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Distant town
Highest degree offered
Bachelor's
Nearest big city
43 miles to Memphis, TN
To the ocean
291 miles
Nearest airport
35 miles to Memphis (MEM) · major hub

How Rust College compares

Selectivity48.7%

More selective than 85% · #4 most selective of 15 in Mississippi

Graduation rate12%

Higher than 3% · #15 of 16 in Mississippi

First-year retention84%

Higher than 74%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$32,275

Higher than 4% · #15 of 16 in Mississippi

Average net price$12,587

Cheaper than 83% · #3 cheapest of 15 in Mississippi

Median debt at graduation$26,159

Lower than 21%

Student–faculty ratio10 : 1

Lower than 76%

Undergraduate enrollment467

Larger than 21%

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

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

467undergrads
  • Women26757%
  • Men20043%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White0.6%
  • Black92%
  • Hispanic1.9%
  • Other or multiracial5.4%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
467
Student–faculty ratio
10 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
71%
First-generation students
46%
Students over 25
21%
Median family income
$15,801
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$45,864
Endowment
$55,371,694

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

Admissions

Admission rate
48.7%
Test scores
Not considered
SAT range (25th–75th %)
SAT average
SAT reading
SAT math
ACT composite

Cost

In-state tuition
$13,265
Room & board
$6,217
Books & supplies
$1,150
Total cost of attendance
$23,107
Average net price
$12,587

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)
12%
Graduated on time (4 years)
9%
First-year retention
84%
Transferred to another college
0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$25,641
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$32,275
Median debt at graduation
$26,159
Students with federal loans
70%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
18%

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing
Yes
Dorm capacity
800
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
100%+
Application fee
$10
Athletics
NAIA Division I
Varsity athletes
238 (134 men · 104 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 (7)

Baseball61
Track and Field (Outdoor)50
Cross Country50
Basketball35
Softball16
Tennis16
Volleyball10

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

Campus safety

Safety grade
D
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
10.7 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
9
Property offenses (2022–2024)
6

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (467 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.

5.0reported offenses a year
3.0 violent a year2.0 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary
2.0
Rape
1.0
Robbery
1.0
Aggravated assault
1.0

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
$12,546
$30–48k
$9,481
$48–75k
$13,878
$75–110k
$8,797
$110k+
$18,356

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
$59,944

$13,878/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.

67%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$5,882
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 67% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $5,882. 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 137 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)
$32,275
Typical debt at graduation
$26,159
Debt vs. one year's pay
81%
Out-earn a HS grad
25%

Typical debt would take roughly 8.1 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
$31,548
Men
$33,898

Men out-earn women by $2,350 (7%) 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
90°F
Winter low
29°F
Annual rain
58.2″
Annual snow
2.3″

Average temperature

HighLow
20°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.03.06.1JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Holly Springs 4 N, MS US station (3.2 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 Rust College

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

Colleges near Rust 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.