City College
of San Francisco
Public Community College in San Francisco, CA. Six-year graduation rate 40%. Median 10-year earnings $45,805.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $45,805 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. The six-year graduation rate is 40%, meaning about three in five students who start do not finish. Median debt at graduation is $8,218, a light load against those earnings.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.18 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Academics
Completion is middling: 40% finish inside six years. 70% of full-time first-years come back for year two, so about one in three are gone before sophomore year. 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. Part-time students fare worse, returning at 41% — relevant if you plan to work while enrolled. The 24:1 student-faculty ratio is high, so large classes and limited faculty contact should be the expectation.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 16,060 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
At $9,616 a year on average after grant aid, cost is low here relative to most undergraduate institutions. Net price varies modestly by income — $6,121 at $0–30k against $13,974 at $110k+ — so the average is a fair guide for most families. Only 36% of students receive grant aid, so most families are paying near the published price. Only 1% take federal loans. Private borrowing is not captured in this figure.
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 · 1,097 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 | $6,121 |
| $30–48k | $5,756 |
| $48–75k | $8,139 |
| $75–110k | $12,508 |
| $110k+ | $13,974 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 108 of these 16,060 students, totalling $785,603 — an average of $7,274 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (San Francisco 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)