Muncie, Indiana. 13,770 undergraduate students. 237 programs in the federal Field-of-Study dataset.
UNITID 150136 · OPEID 001786 · IPEDS HDVINTAGE · COLLEGE SCORECARD · 2025-05 · HISTORY 1996–2024
ANOMALY ENGINE · NOTABLE SIGNALS
Earnings, completion, debt, and enrollment anomalies at Ball State 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.
LONG-ARC SHIFT · TRENDING BETTER-100%
3-year cohort default rate
3-year cohort default rate at Ball State University fell 100% between 2021 and 2024 (1.9% → 0.0%).
SECTION 01 · OUTCOMES SNAPSHOT
Ball State University earnings, debt, and completion vs. the Indiana median
Each tile compares this institution to the Indiana median for the same metric. Sub-line shows the comparison value, not an interpretation. Sparklines trace the federally available history.
MEDIAN EARNINGS · 10Y
$51,833+17% · 6→10y
Indiana median $46,945
MEDIAN EARNINGS · 6Y
$44,394
Treasury earnings · 6y post-entry
COMPLETION · 150%
63.3%+15% · '97→'24
Indiana median 60.7%
MEDIAN FEDERAL DEBT
$16,904+323% · '97→'20
At program completion
UNDERGRAD ENROLLMENT
13,770-18% · '96→'24
latest IPEDS
RETENTION
77.2%-0% · '04→'24
first-time, full-time
ADMISSION RATE
71.6%+12% · '01→'24
latest cohort
IN-STATE TUITION
$10,758+198% · '00→'24
out-of-state $28,766
SECTION 02 · EARNINGS HORIZONS
How Ball State 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).
ALL FEDERALLY AIDED STUDENTS · TAX-RECORD EARNINGSVINTAGE 2025-05
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 Ball State 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
4.3%
0%8% · GE20%+
Median federal debt $16,904 amortized over 10 years vs. median earnings $51,833 (10y after entry).
SECTION 04 · LONG ARC
Ball State 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.
UNDERGRAD · 1996–202413,988
Undergraduate enrollment.IPEDS EF
COMPLETION 150% · 1997–202462.3%
150%-time completion rate.IPEDS GR
MEDIAN DEBT · 1997–2020$23,250
Median federal student debt at exit.SCORECARD
IN-STATE TUITION · 2000→2024+198%
Ball State University · in-state tuition rose
$3,720 → $11,082
OUT-OF-STATE TUITION · 2000→2024+191%
Ball State University · out-of-state tuition rose
$10,180 → $29,630
MEDIAN DEBT · 1997→2020+323%
Ball State University · median debt rose
$5,500 → $23,250
COHORT DEFAULT RATE · 2011→2024-100%
Ball State University · cohort default rate fell
5.4% → 0.0%
PELL SHARE · 2008→2024+58%
Ball State University · pell share rose
21.9% → 34.7%
EARNINGS_MEDIAN_10YR · 2007→2020+31%
Ball State University · earnings_median_10yr rose
$39,500 → $51,833
EARNINGS_MEDIAN_8YR · 2005→2020+31%
Ball State University · earnings_median_8yr rose
$37,300 → $48,782
EARNINGS_MEDIAN_6YR · 2003→2020+32%
Ball State University · earnings_median_6yr rose
$33,600 → $44,394
SECTION 05 · PROGRAMS
Ball State 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.
Estimate the financial outcome at Ball State 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
$338,193
Over 40 years, discounted 5.0%
BREAKEVEN
Year 11
First year cumulative discounted earnings cross zero
Cost per year
$14,882
HS-only baseline · IN
$36,400
Years to complete
6
CIP family
13
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 Ball State University in Indiana
Picked by Carnegie sector × predominant credential level. These are not rankings — just nearest-neighbour surfaces for comparison.
“Ball State University graduates earn $X” — not “Ball State University makes you earn $X”
Median earnings describe what cohorts earned. They do not describe what attending Ball State 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.