Bristol Community College
Public Community College in Fall River, MA. Six-year graduation rate 22%. Median 10-year earnings $38,663.
Students who entered Bristol Community College reach a median of $38,663 a decade later, a figure that trails the typical four-year outcome. Only 23% finish within six years, so roughly four in five students leave without the credential they enrolled for. Graduates leave owing a median of $8,243 — modest by four-year standards.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.21 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
- ! Graduation rate 22% — below national average
Academics
A six-year graduation rate of 23% means finishing is closer to the exception than the rule. Just 54% of first-years come back — most of the completion gap opens in year one. Retention runs well ahead of completion, which means students are not leaving immediately; they are leaving somewhere between the second year and the finish line. The part-time picture is harder: 44% return, against 54% full-time. At 16:1, class sizes land in the normal range for an undergraduate institution.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 5,073 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
At $5,624 a year on average after grant aid, cost is low here relative to most undergraduate institutions. Net price varies modestly by income — $4,550 at $0–30k against $11,257 at $110k+ — so the average is a fair guide for most families. About 73% get grants averaging $5,322, so plan on the possibility of paying closer to full price. 30% of students take federal loans, a middling borrowing rate.
Entering first-year students
A different, smaller group than the rates above: full-time students in their first year of college anywhere. The grant series here also excludes the "other sources" counted in the all-undergraduate figure, so the two are not comparable.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · 787 students
Net price by family income
The same students as the headline above, limited to those who received Title IV federal aid — a narrower group, with a lower overall average. IPEDS publishes no combined figure across these bands, so they should not be averaged into one.
| Family income band | Average net price |
|---|---|
| $0–30k | $4,550 |
| $30–48k | $4,278 |
| $48–75k | $4,749 |
| $75–110k | $7,329 |
| $110k+ | $11,257 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 1,522 of these 5,073 students, totalling $10,491,570 — an average of $6,893 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Bristol County) — budget these against any cost-of-attendance housing estimate.
HUD Fair Market Rents (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities) · FY2026
Veterans & GI Bill
VA GI Bill Comparison Tool (Veterans Affairs GIDS)