Gordon State College vs Point University

Metric	Gordon State College	Point University
Undergraduate enrollment	2,544	1,996
Acceptance rate Lower means more selective	85.9%	44.3%
Average SAT	1,023	—
Median ACT	20	19
In-state tuition	$3,628	$24,000
Out-of-state tuition	$10,948	$24,000
Average net price What students actually pay after aid	$8,105	$25,335
Median debt at graduation	$17,500	$25,250
Graduation rate	20.4%	34.1%
First-year retention	51.2%	74.1%
Median salary (10 yr)	$37,871	$38,740

Metric

Gordon State College

Point University

Undergraduate enrollment

2,544

1,996

Acceptance rate
Lower means more selective

85.9%

44.3%

Average SAT

1,023

—

Median ACT

In-state tuition

$3,628

$24,000

Out-of-state tuition

$10,948

$24,000

Average net price
What students actually pay after aid

$8,105

$25,335

Median debt at graduation

$17,500

$25,250

Graduation rate

20.4%

34.1%

First-year retention

51.2%

74.1%

Median salary (10 yr)

$37,871

$38,740

What the numbers say

Point University is the harder admit at 44.3%, against 85.9% at Gordon State College.
Gordon State College costs less after aid — $8,105 a year versus $25,335, a difference of $17,230 annually, or roughly $68,920 across four years.
Point University graduates report higher median earnings — $38,740 against $37,871 ten years after entry.
Point University graduates a larger share of its students — 34.1% versus 20.4%.
On pure return — salary divided by net price — Gordon State College comes out ahead at 4.7× versus 1.5×.

Comparison tables are a starting point, not a decision. Three things matter more than anything in the table above:

Your real aid offer. Net price is an average across all income levels. Two students at the same school can pay amounts that differ by tens of thousands. Wait for actual award letters before ruling anything out on cost.
Your intended major. Earnings vary more between majors at one school than between schools for one major. A computer science graduate from the "lower earning" school here will likely out-earn a general studies graduate from the other.
Whether you will finish. Graduation rate is the metric most predictive of whether the money spent turns into a credential. Campus fit, support services, and commute all feed into it more than prestige does.

Visit before you commit

Both Gordon State College and Point University run campus visits. Spending an afternoon on each will tell you things no dataset can.