College of
the Mainland
Public Community College in Texas City, TX. Six-year graduation rate 31%. Median 10-year earnings $39,639.
Students who entered College of the Mainland reach a median of $39,639 a decade later, a figure that trails the typical four-year outcome. The six-year graduation rate is 31% — low enough that finishing cannot be treated as the default outcome. Median debt at graduation is $5,960, a light load against those earnings. Mobility is where this school separates itself: 2.1% of students move from the bottom income quintile to the top.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.15 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
- ! Graduation rate 31% — below national average
Academics
Only 31% finish within six years, so roughly two in three students leave without the credential. Transfer-out runs to 12% — common enough at this school that the completion rate is measuring a smaller group than the entering class. A 18:1 ratio is unremarkable; expect a mix of lecture halls and seminars. As a public four-year university, the relevant comparison is other four-year schools rather than the national average across all institutions. With 4,961 undergraduates, the school sits in the middle of the size distribution.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 3,344 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price is $3,252 a year after grant aid — low for a four-year institution, though your own figure depends on aid eligibility. The gap between the $0–30k and $30–48k bands is narrow ($1,352 versus $200), meaning aid is not strongly need-weighted. About 57% get grants averaging $5,011, so plan on the possibility of paying closer to full price. 4% borrow federally — a low rate, though it covers federal loans only.
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 · 454 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 | $1,352 |
| $30–48k | $200 |
| $48–75k | — |
| $75–110k | — |
| $110k+ | — |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 136 of these 3,344 students, totalling $603,806 — an average of $4,440 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Galveston 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)