Mercyhurst University

With 8 social work graduates in the latest year, Mercyhurst University runs a small BSW cohort — #458 among 587 programs nationally by size. Worth asking the department how often required practice courses run, since smaller programs sometimes offer them only once a year.

66.9% of students here finish their degree, against a national median of 50.4% across the BSW colleges in this directory — a meaningful margin. Students who finish take a median of 5 years to do it. Unusually, part-time students complete at a higher rate here (76.0%) than full-time students (58.6%) — often a sign of a program built around people already working in the field.

The average student pays $25,946 a year after grants and scholarships — about the same as the $24,721 median across the 35 BSW colleges in Pennsylvania. 36.0% of first-time students receive Pell Grants. Net price is the number that matters when comparing programs, not sticker tuition — and because most social work roles are with government or nonprofit employers, graduates are typically eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness.