Jackson College
Public Community College in Jackson, MI. Six-year graduation rate 16%. Median 10-year earnings $36,898.
Ten-year median earnings of $36,898 are on the low side, which raises the bar for what this degree needs to cost. Only 16% finish within six years, so roughly four in five students leave without the credential they enrolled for. Graduates leave owing a median of $13,875 — modest by four-year standards.
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 0.9 — limited economic uplift documented
- ! Graduation rate 16% — below national average
Academics
A six-year graduation rate of 16% means finishing is closer to the exception than the rule. With 34% transferring out, this functions substantially as a stepping stone. The student-faculty ratio is 18:1 — typical, which in practice means large lectures early and smaller classes in the major. Judge these figures against other institutions of the same type — sector explains more of the variation in completion than any single campus factor. With 4,647 undergraduates, the school sits in the middle of the size distribution.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 3,199 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price is $8,271 a year after grant aid — low for a four-year institution, though your own figure depends on aid eligibility. The income table below is the number that matters — $5,227 at $0–30k versus $15,563 at $110k+. Grant aid reaches 77% of students at an average of $8,097. Federal borrowing is uncommon here at 24% of students.
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 · 291 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 | $5,227 |
| $30–48k | $6,062 |
| $48–75k | $8,539 |
| $75–110k | $13,799 |
| $110k+ | $15,563 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 772 of these 3,199 students, totalling $5,016,668 — an average of $6,498 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Jackson 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)