undergradly.
Public Community College

Kent State
University at Salem

Public Community College in Salem, OH. Six-year graduation rate 32%. Median 10-year earnings $45,388.

Verdict Mixed outcomes
Kent State University at Salem · Campus
Median earnings · 10 yr
$45,388
Median debt at grad
$24,500
Graduation rate
32.3%
Federal loan default
0%

Ten years after entry, the median Kent State University at Salem student earns $45,388 — a solidly middle-of-the-pack result for an undergraduate institution. Completion is the weak point: 32% graduate within six years. Median debt at graduation is $24,500, roughly typical for an undergraduate degree.

Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.

Green Flags
  • 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Red Flags
  • ! Graduation rate 32% — below national average

Academics

Full-time retention
47%
Transfer-out rate
18%
Student:faculty
26:1

Only 32% finish within six years, so roughly two in three students leave without the credential. Just 47% of first-years come back — most of the completion gap opens in year one. The two rates sit near each other: few students who return for a second year are missing from the six-year completion figure. A 18% 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. A 26:1 ratio means students need to be deliberate about getting faculty time.

Financial Aid

Average net price
$13,301
Full-time, first-time undergraduates paying the in-state rate who were awarded grant or scholarship aid
% receiving grants
63%
degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
% receiving federal loans
56%
degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates

IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 639 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates

Average net price is $13,301 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 ($10,684 versus $18,045), meaning aid is not strongly need-weighted. 63% of students receive grant aid, averaging $5,679 — common but not automatic. Most students borrow — 56% take federal loans to cover the gap.

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.

% receiving grants
75%
Average grant
$5,135

IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · 122 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 $10,684
$30–48k $9,900
$48–75k $14,582
$75–110k $17,624
$110k+ $18,045

IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24

Federal student loans went to 358 of these 639 students, totalling $2,474,159 — an average of $6,911 each.

IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24

Local housing costs

Typical rents near campus (Columbiana County) — budget these against any cost-of-attendance housing estimate.

Studio
$693/mo
1 bedroom
$779/mo
2 bedroom (whole unit)
$973/mo

HUD Fair Market Rents (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities) · FY2026

Veterans & GI Bill

GI Bill students
63
Yellow Ribbon
No
Principles of Excellence
Yes

VA GI Bill Comparison Tool (Veterans Affairs GIDS)

Compare Kent State University at Salem with peer institutions

How we evaluate Kent State University at Salem

IPEDS
US Department of Education
College Scorecard
Post-grad earnings
Census PSEO
Earnings by major
Opportunity Insights
Mobility by institution
Read our full methodology →