Dalton State College
Public College in Dalton, GA. Six-year graduation rate 25%. Median 10-year earnings $40,251.
Students who entered Dalton State College reach a median of $40,251 a decade later, a figure that trails the typical four-year outcome. Completion is the weak point: 25% graduate within six years. Median debt at graduation is $12,937, 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 0.32 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
- ! Graduation rate 25% — below national average
Academics
A six-year graduation rate of 25% means finishing is closer to the exception than the rule. Retention of 71% means a meaningful slice of each entering class does not return. 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. With 31% transferring out, this functions substantially as a stepping stone. Part-time students fare worse, returning at 50% — relevant if you plan to work while enrolled.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 4,425 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price is $5,625 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 $110k+ bands is narrow ($3,962 versus $10,055), meaning aid is not strongly need-weighted. About 76% get grants averaging $5,790, so plan on the possibility of paying closer to full price. Only 15% 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 · 904 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 | $3,962 |
| $30–48k | $3,788 |
| $48–75k | $6,042 |
| $75–110k | $8,114 |
| $110k+ | $10,055 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 679 of these 4,425 students, totalling $3,617,275 — an average of $5,327 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Whitfield 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)