The hidden risk in college ROI: low completion rates
What the lowest-completion schools tend to have in common
| # | Name | Completion rate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Central Yeshiva Tomchei Tmimim LubavitzNY · Private nonprofit | 4% |
| 2 | Peirce CollegePA · Private nonprofit | 6.3% |
| 3 | Miller-Motte College-WilmingtonNC · Private for-profit | 6.3% |
| 4 | South University-Savannah OnlineGA · Private for-profit | 6.3% |
| 5 | South University-AustinTX · Private for-profit | 8.9% |
| 6 | Dine CollegeAZ · Public | 9.7% |
| 7 | Ashford UniversityCA · Private for-profit | 9.7% |
| 8 | Oglala Lakota CollegeSD · Public | 10.1% |
| 9 | Bowling Green State University-FirelandsOH · Public | 10.8% |
| 10 | South University-MontgomeryAL · Private for-profit | 10.8% |
collegecost.fyi · Source: federal College Scorecard
ROI calculators miss one major risk: not finishing. Every payback estimate quietly assumes you graduate — and a degree you pay and borrow for but never complete is the worst financial outcome of all.
But look at which schools land here. This is not a random set of bad colleges. The list is dominated by online programs, for-profit chains, and branch campuses. One for-profit system shows up three separate times under different city names, and several other entries are fully online or satellite campuses of a larger school.
That pattern is the real signal. A very low school-level completion rate usually points to a school type — online, for-profit, or a branch serving mostly part-time and transfer students — more than to one uniquely failing institution. Tribal colleges also appear here; they serve specific communities and student populations that a single completion number does not capture well.
Completion rate is not destiny for any one student. But school type and structure are worth weighing — especially when comparing a school against a cheaper or faster alternative.
Completion rate is the school-level completion rate reported by the College Scorecard, not a degree- or program-specific figure. Each Scorecard institution is ranked separately, so branch campuses and online divisions of a larger school appear as their own entries. The ranking covers schools that offer bachelor's programs and report a completion rate above zero; a literal zero is treated as a reporting gap rather than a real outcome.
School-level completion rate blends every program and student type at an institution — including part-time and transfer students — so it describes the school's structure, not any one degree. Online schools, for-profit chains, and branch campuses land systematically lower here, and the same parent system can appear several times as separate locations. Tribal colleges serve specific communities whose outcomes a single rate does not fully reflect. None of this is a prediction for an individual student.
Source: federal College Scorecard, via collegecost.fyi.