North Dakota
State College of Science
Public Community College in Wahpeton, ND. Six-year graduation rate 55%. Median 10-year earnings $50,513.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $50,513 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. The six-year graduation rate is 55%, meaning about one in two students who start do not finish. Median debt at graduation is $12,000, a light load against those earnings. On economic mobility, 3.0% of students travel from the bottom income quintile to the top.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.24 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Academics
55% graduate within six years — average, but that average still hides a large group who do not. 79% of full-time first-years come back for year two, so about one in five 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. Part-time students fare worse, returning at 42% — relevant if you plan to work while enrolled. The 12:1 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 1,733 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price is $10,794 a year after grant aid — low for a four-year institution, though your own figure depends on aid eligibility. Income makes less difference than usual: $7,803 at $0–30k, $14,772 at $110k+. About 70% get grants averaging $6,603, so plan on the possibility of paying closer to full price. 55% of students borrow federally, so debt is the norm rather than the exception.
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 · 654 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 | $7,803 |
| $30–48k | $7,297 |
| $48–75k | $9,678 |
| $75–110k | $12,078 |
| $110k+ | $14,772 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 956 of these 1,733 students, totalling $5,228,424 — an average of $5,469 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Richland 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)