+10%
In-state tuition
In-state tuition at Fairfield University rose 10% between 2021 and 2024 ($52.9k → $58.4k).
Connecticut · Private nonprofit · Predominantly bachelor's
Fairfield University
Fairfield University is a private Jesuit Catholic university in Fairfield, Connecticut, granting degrees across the liberal arts, business, nursing, and engineering.
4,938 undergraduate students. 104 programs in the federal Field-of-Study dataset.
ANOMALY ENGINE · NOTABLE SIGNALS
Earnings, completion, debt, and enrollment anomalies at Fairfield University
Short-arc shifts (recent 3-year window), peer outliers, earnings trend breaks, completion drops, enrollment cliffs, and debt-to-earnings warnings — surfaced deterministically from the federal record. Multi-decade shifts are reported separately in the Long Arc section, since 25-year tuition drift isn't really an anomaly.
-100%
3-year cohort default rate
3-year cohort default rate at Fairfield University fell 100% between 2021 and 2024 (0.2% → 0.0%).
+10%
Out-of-state tuition
Out-of-state tuition at Fairfield University rose 10% between 2021 and 2024 ($52.9k → $58.4k).
+32%
Private nonprofit bachelor's-predominant peer
10-year earnings at Fairfield University are 32% above the private nonprofit bachelor's-predominant peer median ($88.8k vs $67.4k).
SECTION 01 · OUTCOMES SNAPSHOT
Fairfield University earnings, debt, and completion vs. the Connecticut median
Each tile compares this institution to the Connecticut median for the same metric. Sub-line shows the comparison value, not an interpretation. Sparklines trace the federally available history.
$88,794+20% · 6→10y
Connecticut median $57,515$73,693
Treasury earnings · 6y post-entry83.8%+2% · '97→'24
Connecticut median 70.2%$23,251+53% · '97→'20
At program completion4,938+56% · '96→'24
latest IPEDS89.7%+0% · '04→'24
first-time, full-time45.0%-32% · '01→'24
latest cohort$56,360+172% · '00→'24
out-of-state $56,360SECTION 02 · EARNINGS HORIZONS
How Fairfield University earnings spread, 4 to 10 years after entry
Treasury tax-record earnings for federally aided students who first enrolled at this institution. Each point is a horizon from the most-recent vintage. Single median per horizon (no p25/p75 publishing).
Earnings widen with time post-entry. Selection: federal-aid recipients only — not all graduates.Methodology →
SECTION 03 · DEBT-TO-EARNINGS
What loans cost relative to earnings at Fairfield University
Annual debt service as a share of median earnings 10 years after entry, computed under federal Direct loan terms (10-year fixed at 6%). The 8% line is the gainful-employment threshold from federal regulation; above 12% has historically been considered “failing” under prior rule cycles.
Institution-wide
3.5%Median federal debt $23,251 amortized over 10 years vs. median earnings $88,794 (10y after entry).
SECTION 04 · LONG ARC
Fairfield University enrollment, completion, and debt over time
Federally available history. Coverage varies by metric — IPEDS publishes some series only after 2009 and others only before.
Undergraduate enrollment.
150%-time completion rate.
Median federal student debt at exit.
+56%
Fairfield University · undergrad enrollment rose
3,445 → 5,373
+172%
Fairfield University · in-state tuition rose
$21,435 → $58,350
+172%
Fairfield University · out-of-state tuition rose
$21,435 → $58,350
+53%
Fairfield University · median debt rose
$17,029 → $26,000
-85%
Fairfield University · cohort default rate fell
1.7% → 0.0%
-22%
Fairfield University · pell share fell
8.9% → 6.9%
+35%
Fairfield University · earnings_median_10yr rose
$65,800 → $88,794
+49%
Fairfield University · earnings_median_8yr rose
$58,800 → $87,663
+49%
Fairfield University · earnings_median_6yr rose
$49,500 → $73,693
SECTION 05 · PROGRAMS
Fairfield University programs ranked by 5-year earnings
Each row is one (CIP × credential) program reported by the institution in College Scorecard's Field-of-Study data. Cohort floor is 30 students; below this, federal data is suppressed.
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing$166,662Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing$139,948Finance and Financial Management Services$118,205Accounting and Related Services$114,150Accounting and Related Services$110,042Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing$100,140Economics$97,565Marketing$91,769Mechanical Engineering$88,933International Business$87,404Biology, General$85,315Political Science and Government$81,620Business Administration, Management and Operations$80,731International Relations and National Security Studies$75,046Mathematics$74,058Communication and Media Studies$72,991Psychology, General$66,585Student Counseling and Personnel Services$64,472English Language and Literature, General$63,905History$60,119Film/Video and Photographic Arts$58,235
SECTION 06 · BY CIP FAMILY
21 Fairfield University programs with earnings, grouped by field
Programs are grouped by 2-digit CIP family. Programs without reported earnings are hidden to keep the list focused.
EDUCATION · CIP 13
ENGINEERING · CIP 14
ENGLISH LANGUAGE & LITERATURE · CIP 23
BIOLOGICAL & BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES · CIP 26
MATHEMATICS & STATISTICS · CIP 27
PSYCHOLOGY · CIP 42
SOCIAL SCIENCES · CIP 45
VISUAL & PERFORMING ARTS · CIP 50
HEALTH PROFESSIONS · CIP 51
BUSINESS, MANAGEMENT & MARKETING · CIP 52
HISTORY · CIP 54
COMMUNICATION & JOURNALISM · CIP 09
FINANCIAL OUTCOME · ILLUSTRATION
Estimate the financial outcome at Fairfield University
Pick a program. Cost from Scorecard net price by family income; earnings from Treasury 5-year-post-completion median, projected forward with a Mincer age-earnings curve. The selection-bias toggle applies the Dale-Krueger shrinkage. Outcomes illustration, not a forecast — see methodology.
Shrinks the earnings premium toward the matched-applicant mean. STEM <15%, business ~40%, arts & education ~60%.
NET PRESENT VALUE
$936,748
Over 40 years, discounted 5.0%
BREAKEVEN
Year 8
First year cumulative discounted earnings cross zero
- Cost per year
- $35,003
- HS-only baseline · CT
- $42,300
- Years to complete
- 4
- CIP family
- 51
Outcomes illustration · not a forecast. Projects observed Scorecard earnings forward with a Mincer age-earnings curve under your assumptions. See methodology for the math.
SECTION 07 · SIMILAR INSTITUTIONS
Institutions similar to Fairfield University in Connecticut
Picked by Carnegie sector × predominant credential level. These are not rankings — just nearest-neighbour surfaces for comparison.
CAUSAL DISCIPLINE
“Fairfield University graduates earn $X” — not “Fairfield University makes you earn $X”
Median earnings describe what cohorts earned. They do not describe what attending Fairfield University caused. Selection effects (who admits, who enrolls, who completes) are real. We publish federal data with strict descriptive phrasing — and link the methodology where you can read about the limitations directly.