Home / Worth-It Scores / New Hampshire / Southern New Hampshire
Is Southern New Hampshire University worth it?
A first pass affordability and outcome read for Southern New Hampshire, using national average inputs. Run your own numbers for a personalized score.
Worth-It Score
Heavy lift
Southern New Hampshire lands in the heavy lift band for a typical family. The combination of $36,764 in yearly net price and $19,999 in median debt asks a lot relative to median earnings of $56,870. For context, Southern New Hampshire's net price runs about 45% above the typical 4-year, private nonprofit school. This does not make the school wrong for every student, but it does mean the price deserves a closer test.
Is the price fair?
Compared to 1237 similar 4-year, private nonprofit schools
This school
$33,163
/yrAverage school like this
$22,837
/yrThis weighs on your Worth-It Score
You'd pay about $10,326 more per year than the typical student at a similar school. Over 4 years that's roughly $41,000 in extra cost.
Score breakdown
The public version of the score weighs affordability, after graduation outcomes, and repayment burden.
Affordability
40% weight
The yearly net price is doing real work against the score and raises the financing burden quickly.
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
$36,764
Median earnings 10 years out
$56,870
Median debt at graduation
$19,999
Graduation rate
43%
At Southern New Hampshire, a typical graduate carries about $19,999 in student debt and earns roughly $56,870 ten years after enrolling. On a standard 10-year repayment plan, that works out to about $227 per month, or 5% of pre-tax income. That sits inside a borrower comfort range for many graduates.
How earnings compare to a high school diploma
Graduates earn $19,020 more than the typical working high school graduate in New Hampshire ($37,850) 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.
76% 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
Program earnings vs. the federal benchmark
Median earnings of working graduates four years after finishing each undergraduate program, next to the benchmark the federal earnings test uses: the typical working high school graduate aged 25–34 in New Hampshire ($37,850).
Film/Video and Photographic Arts
Associate degree · 29 working graduates counted
$30,298
$7,552 below the benchmark
Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies
Bachelor's degree · 423 working graduates counted
$39,966
$2,116 above the benchmark
Education, General
Bachelor's degree · 21 working graduates counted
$42,034
$4,184 above the benchmark
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods
Bachelor's degree · 41 working graduates counted
$44,327
$6,477 above the benchmark
Specialized Sales, Merchandising and Marketing Operations
Associate degree · 22 working graduates counted
$46,352
$8,502 above the benchmark
English Language and Literature, General
Bachelor's degree · 158 working graduates counted
$47,103
$9,253 above the benchmark
History
Bachelor's degree · 223 working graduates counted
$49,113
$11,263 above the benchmark
Human Services, General
Bachelor's degree · 341 working graduates counted
$49,508
$11,658 above the benchmark
Psychology, General
Bachelor's degree · 1,216 working graduates counted
$49,769
$11,919 above the benchmark
Social Sciences, General
Bachelor's degree · 104 working graduates counted
$50,491
$12,641 above the benchmark
29 other undergraduate programs here have no four-year earnings figure, usually because too few graduates were counted to publish one. That says nothing about how those programs do. See every program on College Scorecard
An estimate, not an official determination. Under a federal rule taking effect July 1, 2027, programs below this benchmark in official results may face limits on federal student loans; Pell Grants are not affected. The official test uses finer program categories, different graduating classes and the Department's own records; its first results are expected in 2027. Programs that train for tipped jobs, such as cosmetology and massage, won't be rated on 2025 earnings, and the Department decides which programs qualify. Earnings: College Scorecard field-of-study data (released Oct 15, 2026). Benchmark: Department of Education published thresholds (2024 notice).
Represent Southern New Hampshire University and think a figure here is wrong? Request a correction and we'll check it against the latest College Scorecard release.
What this means for your family
Southern New Hampshire is a private nonprofit four year school in Manchester, NH. 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
Saint Anselm
Manchester, NH
Worth-It Score: 73/100
Median net price: $34,382
Private nonprofit 4-year
Dartmouth
Hanover, NH
Worth-It Score: 98/100
Median net price: $26,707
Private nonprofit 4-year
Rivier
Nashua, NH
Worth-It Score: 62/100
Median net price: $26,585
Private nonprofit 4-year
Colby-Sawyer
New London, NH
Worth-It Score: 56/100
Median net price: $26,016
Private nonprofit 4-year
Arizona Christian
Glendale, AZ
Worth-It Score: 27/100
Median net price: $36,720
Common questions about Southern New Hampshire
The median net price at Southern New Hampshire is $36,764 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 New Hampshire? See the most affordable private colleges in New Hampshire →
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 Southern New Hampshire in that range paid on average, after grants and scholarships.
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All students who received aid
$36,764a year, on average
Average for first-time, full-time students who received federal financial aid, 2024-25. 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 →