The Most Affordable Colleges in Nebraska That Actually Graduate Their Students

Wayne State College offers the strongest combination of affordability and graduation rate among public colleges in Nebraska, graduating 56% of students within six years at $5,472 in-state tuition. This ranking covers Nebraska’s public four-year colleges, ranked by six-year graduation rate per thousand dollars of in-state tuition, using federal IPEDS data.

Rank	College	City	6-Year Grad Rate	In-State Tuition	Out-of-State Tuition	Median ACT
1	Wayne State College	Wayne	56%	$5,472	$9,657	N/A
2	University of Nebraska-Lincoln	Lincoln	66%	$7,781	$19,571	24
3	University of Nebraska at Kearney	Kearney	60%	$7,562	$15,002	22
4	University of Nebraska at Omaha	Omaha	49%	$7,752	$16,374	22
5	Chadron State College	Chadron	38%	$6,183	$10,833	N/A
6	Peru State College	Peru	38%	$9,120	$9,120	N/A

1. Wayne State College

Wayne, Nebraska

Wayne State College graduates 56% of its students within six years at an in-state tuition of $5,472 per year. Out-of-state students pay $9,657. Open admissions policy — no test scores required.

https://www.wsc.edu/

2. University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Lincoln, Nebraska

University of Nebraska-Lincoln graduates 66% of its students within six years at an in-state tuition of $7,781 per year. Out-of-state students pay $19,571. Median ACT: 24.

https://www.unl.edu/

3. University of Nebraska at Kearney

Kearney, Nebraska

University of Nebraska at Kearney graduates 60% of its students within six years at an in-state tuition of $7,562 per year. Out-of-state students pay $15,002. Median ACT: 22.

https://www.unk.edu/

4. University of Nebraska at Omaha

Omaha, Nebraska

University of Nebraska at Omaha graduates 49% of its students within six years at an in-state tuition of $7,752 per year. Out-of-state students pay $16,374. Median ACT: 22.

https://www.unomaha.edu/

5. Chadron State College

Chadron, Nebraska

Chadron State College graduates 38% of its students within six years at an in-state tuition of $6,183 per year. Out-of-state students pay $10,833. Open admissions policy — no test scores required.

https://www.csc.edu/

6. Peru State College

Peru, Nebraska

Peru State College graduates 38% of its students within six years at an in-state tuition of $9,120 per year. Out-of-state students pay $9,120. Open admissions policy — no test scores required.

https://www.peru.edu/

How were these colleges ranked?

These rankings score each public four-year college in Nebraska by dividing its six-year graduation rate by its in-state tuition per thousand dollars. A school graduating 60% of students at $10,000 in-state tuition scores 6.0; one graduating 60% at $20,000 scores 3.0. Higher score means more degree completions per dollar spent.

Data comes from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), the federal government’s official higher education database. Graduation rates reflect the most recent six-year cohort. Only public four-year bachelor’s-granting institutions with at least 100 students in the graduation cohort are included. The ranking covers 7 qualifying public institutions in Nebraska.

Source: IPEDS — National Center for Education Statistics

Data from IPEDS 2022 reporting year. Published September 2026.

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