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Colby College

Waterville, ME · official site ↗

Private nonprofitBaccalaureate: Arts & SciencesSmall
85
Fin. Resilience
Resilience score

vs. 192 peers in its group

Colby College is a private nonprofit institution in Waterville, ME, classified by Carnegie as “Baccalaureate: Arts & Sciences.”

It enrolls about 2,407 undergraduates and is benchmarked here against 192 peer institutions (Baccalaureate: Arts & Sciences · Private nonprofit).

On Ibex's Financial Resilience score it rates 85 out of 100 within that peer group, a transparent composite of endowment per undergraduate, net tuition revenue per student, and instructional spend per student.

Its strongest standing relative to peers is median earnings (10 yr) ($80,490, 92nd percentile).

Its weakest is operating margin (-3.2%).

Peer group

Baccalaureate: Arts & Sciences · Private nonprofit

192 institutions

No cross-metric risk flags triggered.
Policy & demographic exposure

How exposed Colby College is to the structural shifts reshaping higher ed: a composite structural-risk index plus the 2025 federal budget law’s endowment excise tax and Grad PLUS elimination and the demographic enrollment cliff. Only signals that apply to this institution are shown.

Structural risk indexAn indicative 0–100 structural-risk index (higher = more pressure) blending operating margin, months of cash cushion, tuition dependency and the home-state enrollment cliff. Screens for the financial and demographic strain that precedes closures and mergers — directional, not a prediction.
49
Elevated
Enrollment cliff (home state)Projected change in the institution's home-state high-school graduates from 2025 to 2041 (WICHE). The U.S. total falls about 13%; a directional feeder-market signal, not an enrollment forecast.
-9.5%
Moderate decline

Indicative signals, not forecasts — see each metric’s definition and the methodology. Endowment-tax and Grad PLUS figures appear only where the institution is actually exposed; “nationally” compares against all schools that report each signal.

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Financial Health Index
6.3
on a −4 to 10 scale
Financial Health IndexStrong

NACUBO Composite Financial Index — the balance-sheet health score accreditors and institutional boards use to gauge financial health; bond-rating agencies track similar ratios. 63rd percentile of 192 peers.

Primary reserve 35%40.9 mo
Reserves vs. debt 35%2.20×
Return on net assets 20%-0.4%
Operating result 10%17.3%

Composite of four ratios on a strength-factor scale (−4 weak → 10 strong): below 3 falls short of the threshold for financial health, below 1 signals acute stress, and above 6 is strong. Computed from IPEDS FY2022-23, the most recent finance release (it lags the current year by 2–3 years). Branch campuses that report finances at a parent/system level can show distorted ratios. For informational benchmarking, not a credit rating or financial advice.

Revenue composition
Where the money comes from $204.1M total revenue · IPEDS FY2022-23

Tuition & fees is the largest single source at 44% of revenue.

Tuition & fees43.6%
Investment return19.0%
Auxiliary enterprises18.0%
Private gifts & grants16.6%
Government grants & contracts1.9%
Other revenue1.0%

Where each dollar of revenue comes from, as a share of total positive revenue. Sources are standardized across public (GASB) and private (FASB) reporting; a net investment loss in a down market is shown as 0% and excluded from the mix.

Net price by income
Average net price by family income After grant & scholarship aid · Scorecard 2024-25
$0–30K$4,049
$30–48K$1,251
$48–75K$3,666
$75–110K$12,106
$110K+$46,511

Average annual net price (total cost minus grant and scholarship aid) paid by federal-aid recipients in each family-income band. Lower-income bands often pay less where need-based aid is strong.

Financial Health
Net tuition revenue / FTETuition revenue per full-time-equivalent student after institutional aid/discounts — what tuition actually nets.
Strong
$36,765
91st percentile in peer grouppeer median $16,756
Instructional spend / FTESpending on instruction per FTE student — how much of the budget reaches the classroom.
Strong
$27,972
84th percentile in peer grouppeer median $16,500
Endowment (end of year)Total endowment value at year end — long-term invested wealth that funds operations and cushions shocks.
Strong
$1.16B
87th percentile in peer grouppeer median $188M
In-state tuition & feesPublished in-state tuition and fees before aid (sticker price).
$69,600
95th percentile in peer grouppeer median $51,253
Out-of-state tuition & feesPublished out-of-state tuition and fees before aid (sticker price).
$69,600
95th percentile in peer grouppeer median $51,253
Avg annual cost of attendanceAverage total annual cost — tuition, fees and living costs — before aid.
$85,420
89th percentile in peer grouppeer median $66,249
Avg monthly faculty salaryAverage monthly salary of full-time faculty (IPEDS) — a proxy for faculty investment.
Strong
$13,207
91st percentile in peer grouppeer median $8,770
Average monthly salary of full-time faculty, as reported to IPEDS.
Average net priceAverage yearly price families actually pay after grants and scholarships.
Strong
$17,180
11th percentile in peer grouppeer median $24,714
Endowment per undergradEndowment divided by undergraduate headcount — endowment wealth behind each undergrad.
Strong
$481,994
81st percentile in peer grouppeer median $165,169
Operating marginNet surplus as a share of total revenue — whether the institution runs in the black.
Deficit
-3.2%
34th percentile in peer grouppeer median 4.2%
Net surplus as a share of total revenue (IPEDS FY2022-23): (total revenues − total expenses) ÷ total revenues. A surplus above 4% is strong; a thin surplus near 0% leaves little margin for shocks.
Tuition dependencyTuition's share of total revenue — how exposed the budget is to enrollment swings.
43.6%
81st percentile in peer grouppeer median 34.7%
Tuition & fees as a share of total revenue (IPEDS FY2022-23). Higher = more exposed to enrollment swings.
Tuition discount rateInstitutional grant aid as a share of gross tuition (IPEDS, private nonprofits only) — the tuition-discount rate. The share of sticker tuition handed back as aid; a high rate (the national average is ~56%) signals heavy price competition for students.
Moderate
39.4%
20th percentile in peer grouppeer median 55.5%
Institutional grant aid as a share of gross tuition & fee revenue (IPEDS FY2022-23, FASB): allowances applied to tuition ÷ (net tuition revenue + those allowances) — the tuition-discount rate enrollment leaders track, i.e. the share of sticker tuition handed back as institutional aid. Private nonprofit institutions only; public (GASB) institutions report tuition differently and are not shown. The national private-college average is roughly 56% (NACUBO); above ~60% signals heavy price competition.
State appropriations shareState appropriations' share of total revenue — material for public institutions, near zero for private.
0%
94th percentile in peer grouppeer median 0%
State appropriations as a share of total revenue (IPEDS FY2022-23). Material for public institutions; ~0 for private.
Administrative cost shareInstitutional support (central administration, governance, general administration, fundraising, and under FASB the operation & maintenance of plant) as a share of total expenses — private nonprofit (FASB) institutions only, where the figure is comparable. An informational gauge of administrative intensity, not a measure of waste.
22.3%
72nd percentile in peer grouppeer median 18.9%
Institutional support — central administration, executive management, governance, general administration, fundraising and (under FASB rules) operation & maintenance of plant — as a share of total expenses (IPEDS FY2022-23, FASB). Private nonprofit institutions only: public (GASB) institutions report functional expenses on a different basis and frequently consolidate large hospital and auxiliary operations, which makes a comparable ratio unreliable, so they are not shown. Because FASB folds plant operations into institutional support, this runs higher than a narrow 'central-office' figure, and schools with sizable hospital or auxiliary operations show a lower ratio as those costs enlarge total expenses. An informational benchmark of administrative intensity, compared within the peer group — not a measure of waste or quality.
Months of operating cushionMonths of operating expenses covered by expendable reserves — the institution's cash cushion.
Strong
40.9 mo
80th percentile in peer grouppeer median 19.1 mo
How many months of operating expenses the institution could cover from expendable reserves (IPEDS FY2022-23 primary reserve ratio × 12). About 5 months — one semester — is the accreditor benchmark for solid footing; below ~3 months is thin. A negative figure means expendable reserves are themselves negative.
Reserves vs. debtExpendable reserves divided by long-term debt — whether reserves could cover the debt.
Strong
2.20×
48th percentile in peer grouppeer median 2.37×
Expendable reserves ÷ plant-related debt (IPEDS FY2022-23 viability ratio). At or above 1.25×, reserves fully cover long-term debt. Shown blank when the institution carries little or no plant debt.
Return on net assetsChange in net assets over the year — whether the institution grew wealthier.
Weak
-0.4%
36th percentile in peer grouppeer median 1%
Change in total net assets ÷ net assets (IPEDS FY2022-23) — whether the institution grew wealthier over the year. 2–4% is adequate; above 4% is strong.
Endowment per FTE studentEndowment per full-time-equivalent student — the FTE-correct measure of endowment wealth per student.
Strong
$472,763
85th percentile in peer grouppeer median $158,647
End-of-year endowment ÷ 12-month FTE enrollment — endowment wealth per full-time-equivalent student. The FTE-correct companion to endowment-per-undergraduate; FTE counts graduate and part-time load, so research universities look less wealthy on this basis than on a headcount basis.
Structural risk indexAn indicative 0–100 structural-risk index (higher = more pressure) blending operating margin, months of cash cushion, tuition dependency and the home-state enrollment cliff. Screens for the financial and demographic strain that precedes closures and mergers — directional, not a prediction.
Elevated
49
— percentile in peer group
An indicative 0–100 structural-risk index (higher = more pressure), an equal-weight blend of the stress signals we measure: thin or negative operating margin, low months of operating cushion, high tuition dependency, and a shrinking home-state high-school-graduate pipeline (enrollment cliff). Averaged over whichever signals are available (at least two required). It screens for the financial and demographic pressures that precede closures and mergers — a directional indicator, NOT a prediction that any institution will close, and not a credit rating.
Graduation & completion
Graduation rate · first-time, full-time
88.8%

88.8% graduate within 6 years (150% of normal time)
75.3% on-time, within 4 years (100%)
Counts only students who entered full-time as first-time freshmen and earned a bachelor's here — the conventional headline rate. Excludes part-time entrants and transfer-ins.

Completion rate · all students
88.4%

88.4% earned a degree or certificate within 8 years (IPEDS Outcome Measures)
The broader cohort — also counts part-time entrants and transfer-ins, and any credential. More inclusive, so it can run higher than the graduation rate.

Why two numbers? They measure different students over different windows, so they are not directly comparable. The graduation rate is the standard federal headline but tracks only first-time, full-time students through a bachelor's; the all-students completion rate adds the part-time and transfer students it leaves out, over a longer window. Read each for what it covers. Source: U.S. Department of Education — IPEDS Graduation Rates & Outcome Measures, via College Scorecard.

Enrollment & Pipeline
Undergraduate enrollmentNumber of degree-seeking undergraduates (IPEDS fall headcount). A size measure, not a quality signal.
2,407
90th percentile in peer grouppeer median 1,299
Admission rateShare of applicants offered admission. Lower means more selective; open-admission schools report none.
7.1%
1st percentile in peer grouppeer median 62.7%
First-year retentionShare of first-time, full-time freshmen who return for a second year — an early signal of student fit and support.
Strong
93.7%
86th percentile in peer grouppeer median 83.9%
Graduation rate (6-yr · first-time, full-time)Of first-time, full-time freshmen, the share who earn a bachelor's at this institution within six years (150% of normal time) — the conventional headline graduation rate. It counts only first-time, full-time students and excludes part-time entrants and transfer-ins, who are captured instead by the all-students completion rate.
Strong
88.8%
88th percentile in peer grouppeer median 70.6%
Graduation rate (4-yr on-time · first-time, full-time)Of first-time, full-time freshmen, the share who earn a bachelor's within four years (100% of normal time) — the 'on-time' rate. It runs well below the six-year rate because many students take a fifth or sixth year; same first-time, full-time cohort as the six-year rate.
Strong
75.3%
85th percentile in peer grouppeer median 60.6%
Pell recipient shareShare of undergraduates on a federal Pell Grant — a proxy for the share from lower-income families.
14.3%
14th percentile in peer grouppeer median 23.3%
Program concentration (HHI)How concentrated a school's annual completions are across academic fields, as a Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (10,000 = one field, lower = many). Higher means more reliance on a few fields; lower means a diversified program portfolio.
Diversified
1,130
— percentile in peer group
How concentrated the institution's degree and certificate output is across academic fields (CIP 2-digit families), as a Herfindahl-Hirschman Index on the latest year's completions: 10,000 means every completion is in one field; lower means output is spread across many. A higher value means the school leans on fewer fields and is more exposed to demand shifts in them; a lower value reflects a broad program portfolio. Shown for institutions reporting at least 100 annual completions. A structural-diversification signal, not a measure of quality.
12-month FTE enrollmentFull-time-equivalent enrollment over the full year — the denominator for per-student finance measures.
2,454
89th percentile in peer grouppeer median 1,474
Full-time-equivalent enrollment over the full 12-month year (IPEDS 12-month enrollment, 2022-23). Counts part-time students at their fractional load, so it runs above fall full-time headcount and is the denominator used for per-student finance measures.
Student-faculty ratioStudents per instructional faculty member — lower usually means smaller classes and more contact.
9:1
40th percentile in peer grouppeer median 10:1
Students per instructional faculty member (IPEDS, fall 2023). Lower generally means smaller classes and more faculty contact, though the measure mixes undergraduate and graduate teaching and is institution-reported.
Enrollment cliff (home state)Projected change in the institution's home-state high-school graduates from 2025 to 2041 (WICHE). The U.S. total falls about 13%; a directional feeder-market signal, not an enrollment forecast.
Moderate decline
-9.5%
— percentile in peer group
Projected change in the number of high-school graduates in the institution's HOME STATE from the class of 2025 (the national peak) to 2041, per WICHE's Knocking at the College Door, 11th Edition (Dec 2024). The 'enrollment cliff' is the post-2008 birth decline reaching college age; the U.S. total is projected to fall about 13% over this window. A college recruits from many states, so its home-state projection is an indicative directional signal of feeder-market pressure, not a forecast of that institution's own enrollment.
Completion rate (all students · 8-yr)Of ALL entering degree-seeking undergraduates — full- and part-time, first-time and transfer-in — the share who earned a degree or certificate at this institution within eight years (IPEDS Outcome Measures). Broader than the graduation rate, which counts only first-time, full-time students, so the two are measured on different students and are not directly comparable.
Strong
88.4%
87th percentile in peer grouppeer median 72.3%
Share of ALL entering degree-seeking undergraduates — full- and part-time, first-time and transfer-in — who earned a degree or certificate at this institution within eight years (IPEDS Outcome Measures, via College Scorecard). Broader and more inclusive than the graduation-rate figures, which count only first-time, full-time students entering a bachelor's program — so the two are measured on different groups of students and are not directly comparable.
Average SAT score
1,501
91st percentile in peer grouppeer median 1,296
Average SAT score of enrolled students who submitted scores (College Scorecard, FY2024-25). A selectivity and incoming-class signal — not a measure of institutional quality — and reported by fewer than half of institutions in the test-optional era. Schools that are test-optional or open-admission show none.
Admission yield
Strong
49.8%
91st percentile in peer grouppeer median 18.4%
Share of admitted students who enrolled (IPEDS Admissions, Fall 2023): students who enrolled ÷ students admitted. A demand signal — how many accepted offers the institution converts to enrollment. Higher yield generally reflects stronger demand, though binding early-decision programs and price positioning can inflate it. Open-admission institutions do not report admissions and show none.
Student body
Undergraduate race & ethnicity IPEDS 2024-25
White54.9%
International11.2%
Asian10.2%
Hispanic/Latino8.4%
Two or more races7.1%
Black4.8%
Unknown3.2%
American Indian/Alaska Native0.2%
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander0.1%

Undergraduate enrollment by race and ethnicity, as reported to IPEDS (College Scorecard). “International” denotes nonresident students; “Unknown” means race/ethnicity was not reported.

Student Outcomes & Risk
Median earnings (10 yr)Median earnings of former students ten years after first enrolling (working, federally-aided students).
Strong
$80,490
92nd percentile in peer grouppeer median $58,427
Median debt at graduationMedian federal loan debt graduates carry at the point they complete.
Strong
$19,157
18th percentile in peer grouppeer median $25,750
3-yr cohort default rateShare of borrowers who default within three years of entering repayment. Lower is better.
Average
3.7%
60th percentile in peer grouppeer median 3.1%
Share of borrowers who defaulted within three years of entering repayment (U.S. Dept. of Education official cohort default rate). Shown for the FY2017 borrower cohort — the most recent cohort whose full three-year default window closed before the 2020-23 federal student-loan payment pause. More recent cohorts are reported by the College Scorecard at essentially 0%, but that reflects the payment pause (no payments were due, so almost no one could default), not borrower health, so the pre-pause cohort is the last meaningful reading. Lower is better.
Share taking federal loansShare of students taking out federal loans — a borrowing-reliance signal.
8.5%
6th percentile in peer grouppeer median 49.6%
Full-time faculty shareShare of faculty employed full-time — higher generally means more availability and continuity.
Strong
93.1%
73rd percentile in peer grouppeer median 81.1%
Debt-to-earnings ratioMedian graduate debt divided by median earnings — how heavy the debt load is versus what graduates earn. Lower is better.
Strong
0.24×
12th percentile in peer grouppeer median 0.44×
Return on credentialMedian 10-year earnings divided by the four-year cost of attendance (annual cost × 4) — a rough payback ratio for the degree.
Average
0.24×
55th percentile in peer grouppeer median 0.23×
Median 10-year earnings divided by the four-year cost of attendance (average annual cost × 4). A rough payback ratio: 1.0× means a graduate's annual 10-year earnings roughly equal the full four-year sticker cost. Earnings reflect federally-aided students; cost of attendance is the published sticker price before aid, so this is conservative relative to what families net of aid pay.
Field-demand outlook (10-yr)Employment-weighted 10-year BLS job-growth projection for the occupations this school's program mix feeds (U.S. all-occupations benchmark +3.1%). An indicative broad-field demand signal, not a program-specific or placement guarantee.
Outpaces job-market average
+4.3%
46th percentile in peer group
Projected 10-year (2024-34) change in U.S. employment for the occupations this institution's degrees and certificates feed, blended across its program mix. Built by mapping each CIP 2-digit field to its occupations via the NCES CIP-SOC crosswalk, taking the employment-weighted average of each occupation's BLS-projected percent change, then weighting fields by the institution's latest-year completions. The U.S. all-occupations benchmark is 3.1%, so a higher value means the school's graduates concentrate in faster-growing labor markets. An INDICATIVE field-level signal at broad-field granularity — not a program-specific or graduate-specific projection, and not a placement or earnings guarantee. Structurally diffuse CIP families whose crosswalk maps to 'any job' are excluded from the signal: 05 Area/Ethnic/Gender Studies, 24 Liberal Arts & Humanities, and 30 Multi/Interdisciplinary. Shown where at least 50% of completions fall in fields with a coherent occupational mapping and the school reports 100+ annual completions.
Loan repayment rate (3-yr)
87.2%
85th percentile in peer grouppeer median 78.3%
Share of student-loan borrowers who had repaid at least $1 of their loan principal within three years of entering repayment (College Scorecard, FY2024-25). Read it as context, not a simple good/bad score: a low rate can mean borrowers are struggling, but it can also mean many graduates have postponed payments while enrolled in graduate or professional school, which is common at selective schools and pushes their rate down. Unlike the cohort default rate, it is not distorted by the 2020-23 federal payment pause. Reported only where enough borrowers exist.
Top fields of study (bachelor's)

Colby College’s largest fields by completions, with graduate earnings (4 years out) and debt benchmarked against the same field at its peer group. Sparklines show the 8-year completions trend.

FieldCompletions / yrMedian earnings, 4 yrs outMedian debtEarnings premiumRisk score
Social Sciences188$100,327
87th pct · 114 peers
—Above benchmark +175%Low · 20
Biological & Biomedical Sciences78———Low · 32
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies64———Moderate · 54
Psychology54———Low · 26
Natural Resources & Conservation52$55,719
75th pct · 32 peers
—Above benchmark +52%Low · 12
Computer & Information Sciences45———Low · 0
Physical Sciences42———Moderate · 58
Mathematics & Statistics40———Moderate · 38
Foreign Languages & Linguistics30———Moderate · 37
Visual & Performing Arts30———Moderate · 57

All 2 top fields shown clear the ME state earnings-premium benchmark (indicative).

Earnings-premium status is an indicative estimate: median graduate earnings four years out vs the ME state median earnings of a high-school graduate (undergraduate credentials) or a bachelor’s-degree holder (graduate credentials) from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (2022 ACS 5-year). The official U.S. Department of Education determination uses its own cohort definition and may differ.

The risk score (0–100) is an indicative blend of earnings-premium margin and the five-year completions trend—higher means a field pays closer to (or below) the benchmark and is shrinking. A directional screen, not an official determination.

See the interactive dashboard for all fields and credential levels (associate through doctoral). Source: College Scorecard Field of Study.

Frequently asked
How financially healthy is Colby College?
On the NACUBO Composite Financial Index — the −4 to 10 balance-sheet score accreditors and institutional boards use — Colby College scores 6.3 (Strong), computed from its IPEDS FY2022-23 finances. This is informational benchmarking, not a credit rating.
How selective is Colby College?
Colby College admits about 7% of applicants, and roughly 94% of first-year students return for a second year.
What is Colby College's student-faculty ratio?
Colby College reports a student-faculty ratio of 9:1 (IPEDS, fall 2023) — that is, about 9 students for every instructional faculty member.
How much does Colby College cost?
The average published cost of attendance is $85,420 and the average net price after aid is $17,180 (College Scorecard).
How much do Colby College graduates earn?
Median earnings ten years after entry are $80,490 (College Scorecard), measured across students who received federal aid.
Are Colby College's programs at risk under the federal earnings-premium test?
Indicatively, at Colby College, all 2 of the largest fields with available earnings data clear the ME state earnings-premium benchmark used by the 2025 federal test (effective July 1, 2026) — median graduate earnings (four years out) exceed those of a typical worker without the credential. This is an estimate using College Scorecard earnings vs ACS medians; the official Department of Education determination may differ.
Compare with peers
Bard CollegeDenison UniversityFurman UniversityVassar CollegeAugustana CollegeTrinity University

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Source: U.S. Department of Education — College Scorecard & IPEDS (most recent releases), with the U.S. Census Bureau (ACS), the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (Employment Projections, field-demand outlook) and WICHE (enrollment-cliff projections). Figures lag the current academic year by roughly two to three years. Percentiles and medians are computed within the institution's peer group. Financial Resilience is a transparent composite — see each component above. Compiled by Ibex Insights.