McLennan Community College
Public Community College in Waco, TX. Six-year graduation rate 39%. Median 10-year earnings $39,163.
Ten-year median earnings of $39,163 are on the low side, which raises the bar for what this degree needs to cost. The six-year graduation rate is 39% — low enough that finishing cannot be treated as the default outcome. Borrowing stays contained, with median debt at graduation of $10,500.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.27 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Academics
Only 39% finish within six years, so roughly three in five students leave without the credential. First-year retention is 69% — the single largest point of attrition on this campus. The distance between those two figures is the part worth noticing — students return for a second year at a much higher rate than they graduate, so attrition here is spread across the middle years rather than concentrated in the first. Transfer-out runs to 20% — common enough at this school that the completion rate is measuring a smaller group than the entering class. Part-time students fare worse, returning at 55% — relevant if you plan to work while enrolled.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 4,997 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
At $4,927 a year on average after grant aid, cost is low here relative to most undergraduate institutions. Net price varies modestly by income — $5,053 at $0–30k against $4,744 at $75–110k — so the average is a fair guide for most families. 71% of students receive grant aid, averaging $8,519 — common but not automatic. 29% of students take federal loans, a middling borrowing rate.
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 · 734 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 | $5,053 |
| $30–48k | $4,987 |
| $48–75k | $8,883 |
| $75–110k | $4,744 |
| $110k+ | — |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 1,458 of these 4,997 students, totalling $5,703,609 — an average of $3,912 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (McLennan 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)