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National University

National University is a private campus in San Diego proper — federal locale codes class it as urban.

What could it cost?

Start with net price after grants, then read the published costs. Each chart names its academic year and the students it covers.

Net price by family income (partial)

key chart

Average annual cost after grants for each family-income band. These group averages are not personal price quotes.

IPEDS Income brackets, 2022–23

family-income band

$30,678

family income
under $30k

not reported

$30–48k

not reported

$48–75k

not reported

$75–110k

$32,956

over $110k

Only two of the five income brackets were filed for the same year at National University — this isn't a full distribution.

Average net price

$22,8782023–24Skip to data table

Average annual attendance cost after grants for the reported student group. Your own aid offer and costs may differ.

Average net price at National University rose from $22,166 (2010) to $25,665 (2016).

Average net price — data
Year	Net price
2010	$22,166
2011	$20,776
2012	$22,000
2013	$23,998
2014	$24,118
2015	$22,652
2016	$25,665
2019	$20,722
2020	$24,524
2021	$29,412
2022	$31,058
2023	$22,878

IPEDS 12 federal reports, 2010–2023

Total cost of attendance

$33,9782024–25Skip to data table

Estimated annual attendance budget before grants, including tuition, fees, housing, food and books. Not every expense is billed by the school.

Total cost at National University rose from $23,758 (2009) to $27,247 (2017).

Total cost of attendance — data
Year	Cost
2009	$23,758
2010	$24,948
2011	$23,851
2012	$23,953
2013	$23,859
2014	$26,862
2015	$26,853
2016	$26,620
2017	$27,247
2020	$26,208
2021	$35,622
2022	$36,459
2023	$37,116
2024	$33,978

IPEDS Academic-year cost 2009–2024

Tuition & fees

Skip to data table

Published tuition and fees before grants. Housing, food, books and other attendance costs are separate.

Tuition & fees — data
Year	Tuition & fees
2000	$7,695
2001	$7,965
2002	$7,965
2003	$8,550
2005	$8,352
2006	$9,072
2007	$9,720
2008	$10,224
2013	$12,096
2014	$12,384
2015	$12,744
2016	$13,016
2017	$13,016
2018	$13,320
2019	$13,320
2020	$13,320
2021	$13,320
2022	$13,320
2023	$13,320

IPEDS Published price 2000–01 to 2023–24 (not adjusted for inflation)

Cost, size & completion summary

Cost, size & completion

Reported tuition is $13,284 before grants and other attendance costs. At National University, aid and other costs change the bill. Scorecard snapshot: 2026-06-10; historical charts show their own years.

At 10,794 undergrads, National University is a mid-sized campus by U.S. standards.

42.9% of first-time, full-time bachelor's entrants completed at National University within six years (2026-06-10 release). This measure excludes other student groups.

Do students finish — and what comes after?

Graduation, debt and earnings cover different groups. Read each chart's entering class or fiscal period; they are not one group's journey.

Six-year graduation rate

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42.9%entered Fall 2018Skip to data table

The share of first-time, full-time bachelor's entrants who completed at this institution within six years. Other students are not included.

The six-year graduation rate at National University fell from 71.4% (entered 1998) to 42.9% (entered 2018).

A six-year rate can only describe a class that entered six or more years ago — by definition the last point on the line is that old.

Six-year graduation rate — data
Year	Graduated within 6 yrs
1994 cohort	21.1%
1995 cohort	36.1%
1996 cohort	71.4%
1997 cohort	—
1998 cohort	71.4%
1999 cohort	46.7%
2000 cohort	53.7%
2001 cohort	57.1%
2002 cohort	50.8%
2003 cohort	31.6%
2004 cohort	31.3%
2005 cohort	57.3%
2006 cohort	52.6%
2007 cohort	31.3%
2008 cohort	40%
2009 cohort	33.3%
2010 cohort	37.5%
2011 cohort	42.2%
2012 cohort	35.9%
2013 cohort	29.5%
2014 cohort	46.7%
2015 cohort	46.7%
2016 cohort	22.2%
2017 cohort	50%
2018 cohort	42.9%

IPEDS Entering cohorts 1994–2018

Median debt at exit (completers vs non-completers)

Historical student groups

key chart

Skip to data table

Median federal student loan debt when students left school, shown separately for those who completed and those who did not.

CompletedLeft without degree

Each point combines two years. Neighboring points share one year, so changes should be read with that overlap in mind.

These two-year windows closed before today's students borrowed — they describe past cohorts, not the current price of a degree.

Median debt at exit — data
Year	Completed	Left without degree
Left school in fiscal years 1997 and 1998 (FY1997/98)	$10,500	$7,500
Left school in fiscal years 1998 and 1999 (FY1998/99)	$10,500	$7,500
Left school in fiscal years 1999 and 2000 (FY1999/00)	$10,500	$6,479
Left school in fiscal years 2000 and 2001 (FY2000/01)	$10,500	$5,500
Left school in fiscal years 2001 and 2002 (FY2001/02)	$10,498	$5,500
Left school in fiscal years 2002 and 2003 (FY2002/03)	$10,500	$5,500
Left school in fiscal years 2003 and 2004 (FY2003/04)	$10,500	$5,500
Left school in fiscal years 2004 and 2005 (FY2004/05)	$9,946	$5,500
Left school in fiscal years 2005 and 2006 (FY2005/06)	$10,000	$5,500
Left school in fiscal years 2006 and 2007 (FY2006/07)	$10,500	$5,500
Left school in fiscal years 2007 and 2008 (FY2007/08)	$11,854	$5,500
Left school in fiscal years 2008 and 2009 (FY2008/09)	$15,500	$5,500
Left school in fiscal years 2009 and 2010 (FY2009/10)	$19,594	$5,635
Left school in fiscal years 2010 and 2011 (FY2010/11)	$21,094	$6,250
Left school in fiscal years 2011 and 2012 (FY2011/12)	$23,438	$7,000
Left school in fiscal years 2012 and 2013 (FY2012/13)	$25,000	$7,812
Left school in fiscal years 2013 and 2014 (FY2013/14)	$25,000	$8,737
Left school in fiscal years 2014 and 2015 (FY2014/15)	$25,000	$9,500
Left school in fiscal years 2015 and 2016 (FY2015/16)	$27,775	$9,500
Left school in fiscal years 2016 and 2017 (FY2016/17)	$28,244	$10,500
Left school in fiscal years 2017 and 2018 (FY2017/18)	$26,784	$11,680
Left school in fiscal years 2018 and 2019 (FY2018/19)	$26,652	$11,500
Left school in fiscal years 2019 and 2020 (FY2019/20)	$26,516	$10,813
Left school in fiscal years 2020 and 2021 (FY2020/21)	$25,000	$10,500

NSLDS GRAD_DEBT_MDN / WDRAW_DEBT_MDN, merged FY periods · via College Scorecard

Earnings after entry

Historical student groups

Median annual earnings after entering college, for federally aided students who were working and not enrolled when measured.

Entered: academic years 2013–14 or 2014–15

$64,331

6 years after entry

Entered: academic years 2011–12 or 2012–13

$65,775

8 years after entry

Entered: academic years 2009–10 or 2010–11

$67,548

10 years after entry

Each figure covers a different group of students who entered college in the stated years. Earnings were measured in the same two years; these are not one group followed over time.

Measured in 2020–21, adjusted for inflation to 2022 dollars. Each figure pools two entering academic years.

Treasury Pooled entering cohorts · Scorecard 2020–21 historical file

What does the admissions record show?

Rates and score ranges describe a past admissions cycle. Submitted scores are not cutoffs or a prediction of admission.

Admissions snapshot & test policies

$13,320 tuition · 2023–24 10,794 undergraduates · Fall 2024

Not sure where you stand? Estimate your GPA →

Admissions

National University’s Fall 2024 filing reports open admission. No selective rate is shown; check National University’s current entry requirements.

No charts are available for this topic in this school's published record.

What is the campus like?

Enrollment counts a campus population; retention follows first-years returning. Their dates and populations are shown separately.

Undergraduate enrollment

10,794Fall 2024Skip to data table

Reported undergraduate enrollment. This count does not measure class size or teaching access.

Undergraduate enrollment at National University rose from 4,776 (Fall 2002) to 10,794 (Fall 2024).

Undergraduate enrollment — data
Year	Undergraduates
Fall 2002	4,776
Fall 2003	4,031
Fall 2004	5,820
Fall 2005	6,186
Fall 2006	6,567
Fall 2007	6,799
Fall 2008	4,472
Fall 2009	5,131
Fall 2010	6,518
Fall 2011	7,879
Fall 2012	9,200
Fall 2013	9,788
Fall 2014	9,451
Fall 2015	8,555
Fall 2016	7,982
Fall 2017	7,360
Fall 2018	7,097
Fall 2019	6,791
Fall 2020	7,864
Fall 2021	7,160
Fall 2022	7,993
Fall 2023	9,725
Fall 2024	10,794

IPEDS Fall headcounts 2002–2024

First-year retention (full-time)

53%Fall 2023 cohortSkip to data table

The share of the reported first-time student group who returned the following year. This rate does not explain why others left.

First-year retention at National University fell from 100% (Fall 2003) to 53% (Fall 2023).

Cohorts at National University run small — a few students either way swings National University's percentages hard.

First-year retention — data
Year	Retention
Fall 2003 cohort	100%
Fall 2004 cohort	100%
Fall 2005 cohort	100%
Fall 2006 cohort	100%
Fall 2007 cohort	60%
Fall 2008 cohort	80%
Fall 2009 cohort	79%
Fall 2010 cohort	76%
Fall 2011 cohort	58%
Fall 2012 cohort	77%
Fall 2013 cohort	60%
Fall 2014 cohort	64%
Fall 2015 cohort	75%
Fall 2016 cohort	57%
Fall 2017 cohort	50%
Fall 2018 cohort	50%
Fall 2019 cohort	45%
Fall 2020 cohort	100%
Fall 2021 cohort	64%
Fall 2022 cohort	54%
Fall 2023 cohort	53%

IPEDS Full-time cohorts 2003–2023

More about National University

28.8% of National University's undergraduates carry Pell grants — the standard federal marker of lower-income enrollment. Carnegie classes National University as a primarily nonresidential campus — most of its 10,794 undergraduates live off campus, and 52.6% of the reported first-time, full-time student group returned for a second year.

The Fall 2024 record classifies National University as open admission. Review current entry requirements and the cost and outcome measures separately.

Why some charts are marked “key chart”

key chart

Start with three useful questions: what costs were reported for families in your income band, how many first-time full-time students finished, and what federal debt borrowers held when leaving.

How National University compares

State and national medians cover active bachelor-primary institutions, mixing public and private schools. Tuition uses in-state rates at public schools. These are broad reference points, not a ranking of similar schools or your likely bill.

Scorecard dates identify the release snapshot, not a shared measurement year. Earnings describe federally aided students who were working and not enrolled ten years after entry; cohorts and populations differ from the admissions and tuition figures.

Tuition

Scorecard 2026-06-10 snapshot · published tuition before aid

National University$13,284

California median$23,000

National median$19,591

Median earnings (10 yr)

Ten years after entry · Scorecard 2026-06-10 snapshot

National University's snapshot: calendar years and dollar basis unverified.

National University$67,548

California median$64,778

National median$53,781

View comparison data & dates

National University, California and national reference values
Metric & basis	National University	California median	National median
TuitionScorecard 2026-06-10 snapshot · published tuition before aid	$13,284	$23,000	$19,591
Median earnings (10 yr)Ten years after entry · Scorecard 2026-06-10 snapshot	$67,548	$64,778	$53,781

Published earnings by bachelor's field of study

For National University, these are federal subject groups (CIP), not departments. Median is the middle annual income.

National University federal-aid recipients · graduated 2017–18 or 2018–19 · income measured 2022 or 2023 · inflation-adjusted to 2024 dollars. Definitions and limits.

View 22 fields & earnings

Bachelor's field of study (CIP category)	Median earnings, 4 yrs after completion
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions	$121,408
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing	$114,413
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering	$100,721
Manufacturing Engineering	$97,525
Computer Science	$95,555
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management	$94,203
Management Information Systems and Services	$94,118
Criminal Justice and Corrections	$81,299
Homeland Security	$80,134
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions	$79,900
Accounting and Related Services	$79,696
Business Administration, Management and Operations	$78,266
Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General	$76,305
Public Health	$70,340
Psychology, General	$66,849
Sociology	$64,860
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness	$62,748
Health and Medical Administrative Services	$59,956
History	$59,645
English Language and Literature, General	$59,192
Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies, General	$58,727
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods	$53,761

These 22 fields listed for National University measure earnings after completion. The $67,548 institution-level snapshot above measures earnings after entry; it is not the same cohort or a total for these fields. 28 additional National University fields have earnings withheld under federal privacy rules.

Frequently asked questions

How much does National University cost?

At National University, tuition is $13,284. Tuition is not the total cost of attendance; aid can reduce your bill.

What earnings data does National University report?

Median earnings ten years after entry: $67,548. Major figures measure four years after completion. Source and date limits.

Similar colleges in California

Run your own numbers

Data: IPEDS ADM2024 (Fall 2024 admissions, provisional) · IPEDS HD2024/IC2024 directory · College Scorecard 2026-06-10 release (institution and field-of-study files; earnings from Treasury records). Retrieved 2026-09-01. Chart dates follow this institution's available observations; the release date is not an academic year or an earnings year. Some records end earlier than others. Field-of-study cohort dates are shown with the table. Read the date and population definitions.