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Is Dakota Wesleyan University worth it?
A first pass affordability and outcome read for Dakota Wesleyan, using national average inputs. Run your own numbers for a personalized score.
Worth-It Score
Stretch
Dakota Wesleyan sits in the stretch band for a typical family. The long-run earnings picture at $57,757 helps, but median debt of $26,859 plus yearly net price of $24,039 creates a tighter path. For context, Dakota Wesleyan's net price is about 4% below the typical 4-year, private nonprofit school. It can work, but the financing plan has to be deliberate.
Is the price fair?
Compared to 1237 similar 4-year, private nonprofit schools
This school
$21,901
/yrAverage school like this
$22,837
/yrThis helps your Worth-It Score
You'd pay about $936 less per year than the typical student at a similar school. Over 4 years that's roughly $4,000 in savings.
Score breakdown
The public version of the score weighs affordability, after graduation outcomes, and repayment burden.
Affordability
40% weight
The yearly net price is manageable, but it makes the aid offer matter a lot.
Outcome
40% weight
The outcome data does not create enough margin to fully offset the cost.
Repayment
20% weight
Median debt stays in a more comfortable repayment range for a typical graduate.
The numbers behind the score
Median net price per year
$24,039
Median earnings 10 years out
$57,757
Median debt at graduation
$26,859
Graduation rate
51%
At Dakota Wesleyan, a typical graduate carries about $26,859 in student debt and earns roughly $57,757 ten years after enrolling. On a standard 10-year repayment plan, that works out to about $305 per month, or 6% of pre-tax income. That sits inside a borrower comfort range for many graduates.
How earnings compare to a high school diploma
Graduates earn $26,372 more than the typical working high school graduate in South Dakota ($31,385) ten years after entering this school. A federal rule finalized in July 2026 ties each undergraduate program's federal loan eligibility to a comparison like this one, with the first calculations expected in 2027.
The national figure is $31,269. The Department of Education uses it instead of the state figure when fewer than half of a school's students come from its state.
85% of former students here earned more than the typical high school graduate ten years after entry, by College Scorecard's own measure.
Context, not a federal determination. The benchmarks are the Department of Education's published thresholds (2024 notice, based on 2022 Census data); thresholds under the 2026 rule have not been released yet. The official test looks at each program's graduates four years after completion; our figure is College Scorecard's median for the whole school, ten years after entry. How this works
What this means for your family
Dakota Wesleyan is a private nonprofit four year school in Mitchell, SD. Private pricing can swing more dramatically based on aid, so your personalized score matters more here than the national average view alone.
Similar schools worth comparing
These schools share a similar sector, geography, or price range.
Private nonprofit 4-year
Augustana
Sioux Falls, SD
Worth-It Score: 67/100
Median net price: $23,283
Private nonprofit 4-year
University of Sioux Falls
Sioux Falls, SD
Worth-It Score: 64/100
Median net price: $21,417
Private nonprofit 4-year
Mount Marty
Yankton, SD
Worth-It Score: 56/100
Median net price: $21,395
Private nonprofit 4-year
Emory & Henry
Emory, VA
Worth-It Score: 51/100
Median net price: $24,031
Private nonprofit 4-year
New England
Henniker, NH
Worth-It Score: 39/100
Median net price: $24,059
Common questions about Dakota Wesleyan
The median net price at Dakota Wesleyan is $24,039 per year. That is the average yearly price after typical grant aid for students in the public federal data, not the published sticker price.
Get your personalized Worth-It score
National averages are a starting point. Plug in your actual aid offer, intended major, and family situation to get a score that reflects your specific picture.
Looking at private colleges options in South Dakota? See the most affordable private colleges in South Dakota →
The Worth-It Score weighs affordability (40%), after graduation outcomes (40%), and repayment burden (20%). Underlying data points come from publicly available federal higher education reporting. See full methodology →
What families actually paid
The published price is rarely what anyone pays. Pick a household income range to see what students at Dakota Wesleyan in that range paid on average, after grants and scholarships.
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All students who received aid
$22,990a year, on average
Average for first-time, full-time students who received federal financial aid, 2024. It does not include transfer or part-time students, and it is an average rather than a quote — what you pay depends on your own circumstances and the aid this school offers you. Source: U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS.
Now work out how to pay for it, cheapest money first.
A Worth-It Score tells you whether the price is justified. The 2026-27 funding guide covers the borrowing order, what changed on July 1, 2026, and the current limits.
Open the 2026-27 funding guide →