Columbia Southern University Rankings

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Ranking Category
#5436 of 14,131 In the World
#1514 of 2,597 In North America
#1431 of 2,496 In the United States
#24 of 33 In Alabama

Quick Review

Acceptance rate
100%
Avg. cost to attend
$14,085 /y
Aid receiving
67%
Undergraduates
13,111
Graduates
5,376
Male:Female Ratio
63:37
Control
Private
for-profit
Highest Degree
Doctor's degree

Columbia Southern University Acceptance rate and admissions statistics

Columbia Southern University has an acceptance rate of 100% and is among the 23% of the easiest universities to gain admission to in the United States. The university reports the admission statistics without distinguishing between local and international students.

18,487 enrolled exclusively in distance education.

Admissions requirements

Columbia Southern University has an open admission policy (non-competitive). The only requirement is a certificate of attendance or a highschool diploma or a General Educational Development certificate.

Enrollment demographics by race or ethnicity

White 10702 (58%)
Black or African American 3420 (19%)
Race or Ethnicity unknown 2863 (16%)
Two or more races 505 (3%)
Asian 374 (2%)
Hispanic 345 (2%)
Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander 102 (0.6%)
American Indian or Alaska Native 102 (0.6%)
Nonresident Alien 3 (0%)

Costs per year: Tuition, Housing, Fees

The average net cost to attend Columbia Southern University is $14,085 per year, calculated as the sum of the average cost of tuition, room and board, books, and supplies, reduced by the amount of average financial aid received.

The final cost of attendance varies for each student based on household income, residency, program, and other factors.

Net average cost to attend
$14,085/year
Average aid awarded
$3,995
Students receiving aid
67%

Average costs by household income

<$30K $13,772
$30-48K $15,391
$48-75K $14,413
$75-110K $16,317
$110K+ $17,878

Tuition and fees

UndergraduatesGraduates
Tuition in-district $5,528$3,640
Tuition in-state $5,528$3,640
Tuition out-of-state $5,528$3,640
Fee in-district $280$180
Fee in-state $280$180
Fee out-of-state $280$180

Columbia Southern University majors

Columbia Southern University has granted 2,579 bachelor's degrees across 16 programs, 1,736 master's across 9 programs, and 41 doctorate degrees in Business Administration and Management, General. Below is a table with majors that lead to degrees at Columbia Southern University.

Major Associate Bachelor Master Doctoral
Business Administration and Management, General 192 515 771 41
Occupational Safety and Health Technology & Technician 307 521 378
Fire Services Administration 580 4
Fire Science & Fire-fighting 432 5
Organizational Leadership 79 182
Criminal Justice & Law Enforcement Administration 181 57
Criminal Justice & Police Science 98 75
Emergency Medical Technology & Technician (EMT Paramedic) 90 60
Public Administration 149
Health & Health Care Administration & Management 128
Crisis & Emergency & Disaster Management 4 97
General Studies 99
Human Resources Management & Personnel Administration, General 96
Psychiatric & Mental Health Services Technician 93
Homeland Security 53 34
Computer and Information Systems Security & Auditing & Information Assurance 75
Public Health, General 64
Environmental Studies 61
Information Technology 5 53
Medical Insurance Coding Specialist & Coder 33
Critical Infrastructure Protection 2
Grand Total 1,258 2,579 1,736 41

Columbia Southern University has a graduation rate of 37%, which is among the 21% lowest for universities in the US.

Total Men Women
Graduation rate 37% 40% 33%
  • Full-time retention rate - 59%
  • Part-time retention rate - 30%

Publications & Citations

Columbia Southern University has published 78 scientific papers with 331 citations received. The research profile covers a range of fields, including Liberal Arts & Social Sciences, Political Science, Business, Psychology, Law, Computer Science, Medicine, Management, Biology, and Sociology.

Publications
78
Citations
331

Publication / Citation count by topic

Liberal Arts & Social Sciences
56 / 271
Political Science
44 / 242
Business
41 / 188
Psychology
38 / 206
Law
38 / 188
Computer Science
37 / 182
Medicine
37 / 155
Management
31 / 158
Biology
29 / 148
Sociology
25 / 107
Philosophy
22 / 169
Communications and Public Relations
21 / 153
Engineering
21 / 99
Environmental Science
19 / 86
Mathematics
18 / 128
Chemistry
17 / 53
Physics
17 / 60
Economics
17 / 96
Social Psychology
16 / 145
Geography and Cartography
14 / 40
Pathology
14 / 86
Neuroscience
13 / 62
Development Studies
12 / 90
Psychiatry
12 / 35
Quantum and Particle physics
11 / 45
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
11 / 47
Statistics
11 / 104
Management Information Systems
10 / 48
Marketing
10 / 41
Demography
9 / 65
Health Science
9 / 24
Public Health
9 / 45
Math Teachers
8 / 14
Electrical Engineering
8 / 63
Mechanical Engineering
8 / 32
Nursing
8 / 54
Materials Science
7 / 16
History
7 / 23
Machine Learning
7 / 102
Archaeology
7 / 23

Annual publication & citation counts

Year Publications Citations
2009 0 1
2010 0 0
2011 3 1
2012 2 1
2013 4 1
2014 8 1
2015 4 7
2016 2 6
2017 7 7
2018 6 9
2019 4 19
2020 7 37
2021 5 46
2022 12 63
2023 3 75
2024 5 56

Notable alumni

  1. Steven Nordhaus

    Steven Nordhaus
    Born in
    United States Flag United States
    Years
    1966-.. (age 59)
    Enrolled in Columbia Southern University
    Graduated with Master of Science in organizational leadership
    Occupations
    military leadermilitary officer
    Biography

    Steven Scott Nordhaus is a United States Air Force general who has served as the 30th chief of the National Guard Bureau since 2 October 2024. He previously served as the commander of First Air Force from 2023 to 2024. He served as the Director of Operations of the National Guard Bureau from 2019 to 2022. From 2017 to 2019, he was the Commander of the Air National Guard Readiness Center.

General info

Academic calendar Open enrollment - students may commence at any time
Total FTE staff 719
Carnegie classification Master's Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs

Location and contacts

Address 21982 University Lane
Orange Beach, Alabama, 36561-9000
United States
City population 8,000
Phone 25198137711278