National Facts about Two-Year Colleges
Number of Community Colleges:
- Public institutions - 997
- Private institutions - 145
- Tribal institutions - 31
- Total - 1173
Enrollment:
- 10.4 million students
- 5.4 million credit
- 5 million noncredit
- 44% of all U.S. undergraduates
- 45% of first-time freshmen
- 58% women; 42% men
- 63% part time; 37% full time
(full time = 12 + credit hours)
Student Profile:
- 46% of black undergraduate students
- 55% of Hispanic
- 46% of Asian/Pacific Islander
- 55% of Native American
- Average student age - 29 years
Students Receiving Financial Aid:
- Any aid - 32.8%
- Pell Grants - 14.9%
- State aid - 6.1%
- Federal loans - 6.0%
Percentage of Federal Financial Aid
- Pell Grants - 33.0%
- Campus-based aid - 9.8%
- Stafford Loans:
- subsidized - 5.9%
- unsubsidized - 5.1%
- PLUS - 1.2%
Tuition and Fees:
- $1,518 average annual tuition
Degrees and Certificates Annually:
- More than 450,000 associate degrees
- Nearly 200,000 two-year certificates
- In 2001, 60.4% of applicants taking the national registered nurse examination to become licensed professional registered nurses were graduates of associate degree programs.
Revenue Sources: (Public Colleges)
- 42% - state funds
- 23% - tuition and fees
- 18% - local funds
- 5% - federal funds
- 10% - other
Governance: (Public Colleges)
- More than 600 boards of trustees
- 6,000 board members
- 29 states - local boards
- 16 states - state boards
- 4 states - local/state boards
Information Technology:
- More than 95% of community colleges are Internet connected. In recent years, the average starting salary for graduates of information technology programs has increased more than 24%, from $20,753 to $25,771.
Training:
- 95% of businesses and organizations that use them recommend community college workforce education and training programs.
Welfare Reform:
- 48% of community colleges offer welfare-to-work programs. Of those that do not, 54% plan to offer programs specifically designed for welfare recipients.
Healthcare:
- 65% of new healthcare workers get their training at community colleges.
**Statistics from National Profile of Community Colleges: Trends and Statistics, Third Edition (2000), available from Community College Press at (800) 250-6557.