Washington · Private nonprofit · Predominantly bachelor's

Cornish College of the Arts

Seattle, Washington. 480 undergraduate students. 10 programs in the federal Field-of-Study dataset.

ANOMALY ENGINE · NOTABLE SIGNALS

What the data flags at Cornish College of the Arts

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.

PEER OUTLIER · WARNING-47%

Private nonprofit bachelor's-predominant peer

10-year earnings at Cornish College of the Arts are 47% below the private nonprofit bachelor's-predominant peer median ($33.7k vs $63.3k).

DEBT–EARNINGS WARNING · WARNING8.1%

Debt-to-earnings

Debt-to-earnings ratio of 8.1% at Cornish College of the Arts exceeds the 8% gainful-employment threshold ($20.6k debt amortized over 10 years vs $33.7k earnings).

LONG-ARC SHIFT · TRENDING WORSE+18%

In-state tuition

In-state tuition at Cornish College of the Arts rose 17% between 2021 and 2024 ($35.5k → $41.7k).

LONG-ARC SHIFT · TRENDING WORSE+18%

Out-of-state tuition

Out-of-state tuition at Cornish College of the Arts rose 17% between 2021 and 2024 ($35.5k → $41.7k).

SECTION 01 · OUTCOMES SNAPSHOT

The numbers, vs. Washington

Each tile compares this institution to the Washington median for the same metric. Sub-line shows the comparison value, not an interpretation. Sparklines trace the federally available history.

MEDIAN EARNINGS · 10Y
$33,696+22% · 6→10y
Washington median $47,350
MEDIAN EARNINGS · 6Y
$27,580
Treasury earnings · 6y post-entry
COMPLETION · 150%
52.0%+132% · '00→'24
Washington median 46.8%
MEDIAN FEDERAL DEBT
$20,610+167% · '97→'20
At program completion
UNDERGRAD ENROLLMENT
480-24% · '96→'24
latest IPEDS
RETENTION
68.5%-6% · '04→'24
first-time, full-time
ADMISSION RATE
70.5%-15% · '01→'24
latest cohort
IN-STATE TUITION
$39,913+176% · '00→'24
out-of-state $39,913
SECTION 02 · EARNINGS HORIZONS

How 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

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

8.1%
0%8% · GE20%+

Median federal debt $20,610 amortized over 10 years vs. median earnings $33,696 (10y after entry).

SECTION 04 · LONG ARC

Ten-plus year arc

Federally available history. Coverage varies by metric — IPEDS publishes some series only after 2009 and others only before.

UNDERGRAD · 19962024488
83641619962024
Undergraduate enrollment.IPEDS EF
COMPLETION 150% · 2000202456.4%
59%24%20002024
150%-time completion rate.IPEDS GR
MEDIAN DEBT · 19972020$27,000
$27,000$9,90719972020
Median federal student debt at exit.SCORECARD
COMPLETION · 150% · 20002024+132%

Cornish College of the Arts · completion · 150% rose

24.3% → 56.4%

COMPLETION · 100% · 20012009+77%

Cornish College of the Arts · completion · 100% rose

27.5% → 48.6%

UNDERGRAD ENROLLMENT · 19962024-24%

Cornish College of the Arts · undergrad enrollment fell

640 → 488

IN-STATE TUITION · 20002024+176%

Cornish College of the Arts · in-state tuition rose

$15,100 → $41,684

OUT-OF-STATE TUITION · 20002024+176%

Cornish College of the Arts · out-of-state tuition rose

$15,100 → $41,684

MEDIAN DEBT · 19972020+167%

Cornish College of the Arts · median debt rose

$10,125 → $27,000

COHORT DEFAULT RATE · 20112023-100%

Cornish College of the Arts · cohort default rate fell

13.0% → 0.0%

EARNINGS_MEDIAN_8YR · 20052020+24%

Cornish College of the Arts · earnings_median_8yr rose

$25,200 → $31,152

EARNINGS_MEDIAN_6YR · 20032020+28%

Cornish College of the Arts · earnings_median_6yr rose

$21,600 → $27,580

SECTION 05 · 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.

SECTION 06 · BY CIP FAMILY

5 programs with earnings, grouped

Programs are grouped by 2-digit CIP family. Programs without reported earnings are hidden to keep the list focused.

VISUAL & PERFORMING ARTS · CIP 50

FINANCIAL OUTCOME · ILLUSTRATION

Estimate the financial outcome at Cornish College of the Arts

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
-$521,679
Over 40 years, discounted 5.0%
BREAKEVEN
Doesn’t reach breakeven within the horizon
graduationyear 0year 39
Cost per year
$36,693
HS-only baseline · WA
$41,200
Years to complete
4
CIP family
50

Outcomes illustration · not a forecast. Projects observed Scorecard earnings forward with a Mincer age-earnings curve under your assumptions. See methodology for the math.

CAUSAL DISCIPLINE

Cornish College of the Arts graduates earn $X” — not “Cornish College of the Arts makes you earn $X”

Median earnings describe what cohorts earned. They do not describe what attending Cornish College of the Arts 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.

Methodology →