Isothermal Community College
Public Community College in Spindale, NC. Six-year graduation rate 55%. Median 10-year earnings $33,325.
Students who entered Isothermal Community College reach a median of $33,325 a decade later, a figure that trails the typical four-year outcome. 56% finish within six years — respectable, though a meaningful share still leave without a credential.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
- ! Mobility score 1.0 — limited economic uplift documented
Academics
Six-year completion sits at 56%, meaning about two in five students who enroll leave without finishing. 71% of full-time first-years come back for year two, so about one in three are gone before sophomore year. The two rates sit near each other: few students who return for a second year are missing from the six-year completion figure. 31% of students transfer out, which reframes what the graduation rate above is measuring. The 11:1 student-faculty ratio is small enough that seminar-sized classes are the norm.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 1,056 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
At $11,495 a year on average after grant aid, cost is low here relative to most undergraduate institutions. The gap between the $0–30k and $110k+ bands is narrow ($10,108 versus $14,687), meaning aid is not strongly need-weighted. Grant aid is widespread — 87% of students receive it, averaging $4,751.
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 · 173 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 | $10,108 |
| $30–48k | $10,605 |
| $48–75k | $11,592 |
| $75–110k | $12,928 |
| $110k+ | $14,687 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Rutherford 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)