This is one of those pieces: Saint Augustine's University, in Raleigh, North Carolina. What follows is not an opinion about whether it is "good" or "bad." It is what the United States government, through the IPEDS system, has on record about it. I am going to translate it for you without embellishment and without fear, so you can reach your own conclusion with real data in hand, not marketing brochures or a name someone once mentioned in a conversation.
What Kind of School It Is, at a Glance
Saint Augustine's University is a private, nonprofit, four-year university that the Carnegie classification describes as a baccalaureate college with diverse fields of study. It is small—very small—and highly residential: at the time of that classification, at least half of its undergraduate students lived in institution-owned or affiliated housing, and at least 80 out of every 100 attended full time.
That last point matters for your budget. Living on campus is not the same as paying tuition. Room and board are charged separately, are almost never bundled together in the first brochure you receive, and need to be requested in writing before you compare this school with any other.
It is located within the Raleigh-Cary metropolitan area, in a city with 250,000 residents or more according to the census code. That does not tell you how to get to campus or what it is like to live nearby. If your child plans to live at home, drive the route yourself on a weekday, at the exact time of your child's classes. The actual travel time is almost never what the map on your phone promises.
Academically, IPEDS records a master's degree as the highest level the institution reports offering and classifies it as a degree-granting institution, primarily at the bachelor's level or higher. That is a general institutional fact: it does not tell you whether your child's specific major is available there or whether there is a clear path from undergraduate to graduate study. That must be asked program by program.
And something defines the school's original identity: in the federal file for 2023, Saint Augustine's University is marked as a Historically Black College or University (HBCU). Of the 3,012 institutions in this database, 76 have that designation. It tells you where the school comes from and the mission under which it was founded. It does not tell you whom it admits today or what your child's experience there will be like. Being an HBCU does not make a school better or worse: it is a designation of origin, not a verdict on quality or environment. What is worth doing is asking about things with specific names: what student center exists, what scholarship applies, and who answers the phone in April.
A Small Community, and What That Means for Your Child
With 943 students enrolled in the official fall count, Saint Augustine's University falls within the band of fewer than 1,000 students: one of the small schools. Compared with the 941 private four-year schools with selective admissions in this census that report this figure, seven out of ten have more students. Of the total, 930 are undergraduates and 13 are graduate students. Above all, it is a bachelor's-degree institution.
Being small does not make it better or worse. But it does change one practical question: whether courses in the major that interests your child are offered every semester or only once a year. That affects how long it takes to graduate, and you ask that question directly of the department rather than guessing from the school's size.
As for who studies there: out of every 100 undergraduate students, 5 are Hispanic or Latino. It is a small minority, and compared with the 941 similar schools in this census, it falls in the lowest quarter. That does not remove the school from your list if your child is interested, but it is information worth having before the visit: ask what is available for Latino students—a student group, a cultural center, someone in the office who speaks Spanish—and, if you can, talk with a Latino student who is already there. The number describes the school as a whole; your child's experience in a specific major may look different.
The undergraduate population is almost evenly divided between men and women: 51 out of every 100 are women. Students ages 25 to 64 are a minority, at 11 out of every 100. And as for where incoming students came from, that information simply is not reported for this school in this cycle. It is not estimated or invented: it is unavailable.
How the Academic Year Works
The calendar uses semesters: two long terms of about 15 weeks each. The institution stated that it accepts credits from AP exams and military training, but it did not check the box for credit based on life experience. It also enrolls high school students in college courses for credit through a formal dual-enrollment program.
Here is a hard and useful truth: saying that AP is accepted does not mean credit is awarded for every exam. From this information, we do not know what scores are required, how many credits are awarded, or whether those credits count toward your child's specific major. Request the equivalency evaluation in writing before enrolling. Do not budget for the savings until you have it in hand.
As for degrees, the school awarded 100 bachelor's degrees in the most recently reported year, spread across 15 families of majors. The largest was business and administration, with 28 out of every 100 degrees—it does not dominate, but it also has no close competitor. Compared with 942 similar schools, it falls in the quarter awarding the fewest degrees per year. With numbers this small, the count can shift substantially from one year to the next: request the last three years of data for the exact program that interests your child rather than relying on a single year's snapshot.
The official student-to-faculty ratio is 11 to 1, a low figure compared with similar schools. But be careful: that is an institution-wide aggregate average. It does not tell you the actual size of first-year classes or the method used to calculate it. It is a signal, not a guarantee of personalized attention.
The institution also reports structured opportunities: study abroad, a complete program that can be taken entirely at night or on weekends, and pathways that prepare students for teacher certification.
Getting In: What It Requires, What It Does Not, and Who Actually Enrolls
Here is one of the most important facts in this entire article, and I want you to read it carefully.
Saint Augustine's University does not have open admissions. It reviews specific items before saying yes. Of nine possible considerations, it marked three as required: the high school transcript, the high school GPA, and an English proficiency exam for applicants to whom it applies. The list of what it does not consider is longer: class rank, the high school course plan, the personal essay, letters of recommendation, a portfolio or competency exam, work experience, and whether a family member attended the school. All of that may be submitted, but the report says it does not factor into the admissions decision.
If your child studied outside the United States or attended high school in Spanish, this applies directly to you: ask now whether the English proficiency exam is required and what would qualify your child for an exemption. It is the kind of thing people discover late, when it is already more difficult to resolve.
The published undergraduate application fee is $0. And the SAT or ACT is not considered in the admissions decision even if submitted—that box does not say whether the tests are used for scholarships or placement, so ask about that separately.
Now, the numbers on who gets in and who enrolls. In 2023, the university received 3,160 first-time applications and offered admission to 1,856 applicants. That is 59 out of every 100 applicants admitted: admission is not guaranteed, but it is not a lottery either. Compared with similar schools, it is on the more selective side: seven out of ten admit a higher percentage.
But here is the number that I really want to make you stop: out of every 100 admitted students, only 9 enrolled. Put another way, out of every 11 young people who received a yes from this school, about one ultimately took the spot. The other ten already had an acceptance letter in hand and decided not to attend. Compared with similar schools, this figure is among the lowest.
Do not read that as a mark against the school. The federal record does not explain why each person made that decision, and it says nothing about what your child specifically will be offered. What it does tell you is this: wait for your own admission letter with the net price included—that is what the year will actually cost you—and decide with that number in hand, not based on what other families did.
As for transfers: in the fall of 2023, 139 undergraduate students entered after attending another institution of higher education. That is a count of people who arrived, not those who left; this school does not report the departure rate for that same cohort. Compared with similar schools, that number of arrivals places it in the upper half. How many credits were accepted for those students is another question, and it should be asked directly of the admissions office.
The Price: What It Costs on Paper and What You Might Actually Pay
At Saint Augustine's University, among 112 first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid and whose EFC records showed family income below $30,000, the average net price was $17,346. Among 27 students in the same population with EFC family income from $48,001 to $75,000, it was $17,866; among 10 students with EFC family income above $110,000, it was $20,861. For dependent students, the band combines their parents' income with their own.
The difference between the average for the lowest-income band, comprising 112 students, and the average for the highest-income band, comprising 10 students, is $3,515. Among first-year students who received any grant or scholarship, the average was $18,373.
$17,346 was the average net price for the lowest-income families in academic year 2022-23. That does not mean it is what your family will pay. It helps you decide whether it is worth requesting the financial aid letter.
None of these figures is a price quote for your child. The income bands in this profile describe first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid; at public institutions, they use the in-state or in-district rate. The overall average with grants or scholarships, when shown, describes first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal, state, local, or institutional grants or scholarships. The number that matters is the financial aid letter sent to you. In the meantime, use the net price calculator on the school's website.
How It Is Paid For: Grants, Loans, and What That Implies
Out of every 100 degree- or certificate-seeking students, 85 received some grant or scholarship that does not have to be repaid. Among those who received it, the average was $11,451 for the year. That average is not spread across everyone: it counts only those who actually received something.
The Pell Grant—federal aid for low-income families—went to 61 out of every 100 students. That is more than half. Applying for that aid here is neither rare nor limited to a few people: do not hesitate to ask what documents are required and when they are due.
Now the other side: 63 out of every 100 undergraduate students received a federal student loan that same year. Among those who received one, the annual average was $7,590. If your child borrowed a similar amount each year during the four years of the degree, the total would be around $30,360, not counting interest. That is money to think through before signing the first document, not at the end of the process.
This percentage describes other families, not yours. What your child would need to borrow depends on your child's own financial aid letter. And that average loan amount covers only one year and only federal loans in the student's name—it does not include Parent PLUS loans, bank debt, or credit cards, nor does it represent the total debt the student would have upon graduation.
The institution also offers an installment tuition payment plan, if that helps manage the family's cash flow.
Campus Life, Learning Format, and Reported Support
Saint Augustine's University has its own housing, but it does not require all full-time students to live there. Its largest meal-plan option provides a fixed number of meals per week. The maximum reported housing capacity is 1,044 students. The existence of housing does not guarantee that a bed will be available: request the annual rate, the application deadline, and whether you are guaranteed a place or placed on a waiting list in writing.
There is an ROTC opportunity, and the only branch confirmed in writing is the Army. The Navy and Air Force are not marked—that does not mean participation is impossible; it means you need to ask directly if your child is interested in another branch.
The university competes in intercollegiate athletics and is affiliated with the NCAA, with reported membership in football, basketball, and cross-country/track. If your child wants to play, that information describes the institution; it is not a promise to your child. Write directly to the coach of the specific sport and ask in writing whether there is a spot, what division that sport competes in, and whether it awards athletic scholarships.
As for distance education: 10 out of every 100 undergraduate students take their entire course load online; the other 90 take at least one class in person. The school reports offering at least one complete distance-education program, but that does not confirm the exact level or major—that must be verified directly.
The library has employed staff, physical and digital collections, and interlibrary lending, with spending that exceeds the government-recorded threshold of $100,000. Exceeding that threshold does not guarantee that databases specific to your child's major are available: ask about them by the name of the major.
Reported services include combined academic and career counseling, employment services, placement services for graduates, specific support for veterans and military members, including participation in Yellow Ribbon, and a disability-services webpage.
The Number That Carries the Most Weight: How Many Finish
We have reached the part of the map that I most want you to see clearly, because it is the part most easily misunderstood when read quickly.
Of a cohort of 217 full-time students who entered in the fall of 2022, 53 out of every 100 were still enrolled or had completed a bachelor's degree one year later—the official retention criterion. Compared with 930 similar schools, this figure is among the lowest: nine out of ten of those schools retain a higher share.
And now graduation. Of 337 students who began a full-time bachelor's degree in 2017, only 67 had earned a degree from this school within six years. That is 20 out of every 100. At four years, the figure was 13 out of every 100—a small gap between the two time frames. Compared with 920 similar schools, it ranks at the very bottom.
I want to be clear with you about what this means and what it does not mean. Out of every 100 students who entered, 80 did not have a bachelor's degree from this school six years later. That remainder may include students who earned a shorter credential there or graduated from another university—the data does not distinguish between those cases. It is not a verdict on your child. It is a school-wide number, and IPEDS does not report it by major. If your child is interested in a specific program, you need to request that figure directly from the department.
There is one more figure, covering a longer period: among a cohort that entered between July 2015 and June 2016, by the August 2023 reporting point—eight years later—29 out of every 100 had earned a degree or certificate from this school. Among students who received a Pell Grant within that same cohort, the figure falls to 27 out of every 100, thirteen points below the figure for those who did not receive Pell. Compared with 935 similar schools, it also ranks at the very bottom.
This is a hard truth, and I am telling you without softening it because you deserve to know it before deciding, not afterward: this school's persistence and graduation numbers are consistently near the bottom of its comparison group. That does not say what will happen to your child specifically—no aggregate statistic predicts one person's outcome—but it is information that should carry weight in your family conversation. If this school remains on the list, the right question is not "Why is the number like this?" but rather: "What concrete support exists to keep my child from becoming part of that majority, and who at the school can explain it to me by name?"
How to Bring This Together in Your Family Plan
You now understand, in considerable depth, one of the three pieces you need to decide: what this university really is, what it costs, whom it admits, how people arrive, and how many finish.
You still need the other two, and no article has them: what your child wants to study and what your child has built so far, and what your family can and is willing to pay. No figure in this article replaces those two conversations.
If your child already has it on the list, this is what I would do first: request the financial aid letter and the actual net price before falling in love with the school or ruling it out; ask in writing what exists for Latino students if that matters to your child; verify whether the specific major is offered every semester; and ask, without fear, what happened to the students who did not graduate and what the school will do differently for your child.
Your child is responsible for making the effort, staying curious, going to class, and asking for help when needed. You are responsible for the money, the deadlines, the uncomfortable questions, and making sure your child does not decide alone in the face of a system neither of you inherited. It is not your job to live your child's college life. It is your job to reach the point of decision without losing an option because you did not know the map.
Source note: the information in this article comes from IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) and the United States Department of Education, primarily from the 2022-23 and 2023-24 cycles. Best College Aid does not represent Saint Augustine's University or any government agency; this article organizes and explains public data to help you understand it.