College of
Lake County
Public Community College in Grayslake, IL. Six-year graduation rate 37%. Median 10-year earnings $43,424.
Ten years after entry, the median College of Lake County student earns $43,424 — a solidly middle-of-the-pack result for an undergraduate institution. The six-year graduation rate is 37% — low enough that finishing cannot be treated as the default outcome. Median debt at graduation is $8,735, 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 0.20 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Academics
Only 37% finish within six years, so roughly three in five students leave without the credential. Retention of 72% means a meaningful slice of each entering class does not return. That gap between coming back and finishing is where this school loses people — after the first year, not during it. A 16% transfer-out rate accounts for part of that gap: those students left for another institution rather than dropping out, and the graduation rate above counts them as non-completers here. Part-time students fare worse, returning at 59% — relevant if you plan to work while enrolled.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 9,282 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price is $6,357 a year after grant aid — low for a four-year institution, though your own figure depends on aid eligibility. Net price varies modestly by income — $6,096 at $0–30k against $11,025 at $110k+ — so the average is a fair guide for most families. 45% get grants, which means the net price above will not apply to most applicants. Only 3% 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 · 1,272 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 | $6,096 |
| $30–48k | $6,786 |
| $48–75k | $8,678 |
| $75–110k | — |
| $110k+ | $11,025 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 244 of these 9,282 students, totalling $1,340,950 — an average of $5,496 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Lake 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)