Ozarka College
Public Community College in Melbourne, AR. Six-year graduation rate 47%. Median 10-year earnings $29,314.
Median earnings ten years after entry come to $29,314, below what most undergraduate institutions return — the central fact to weigh against cost here. 47% finish within six years — respectable, though a meaningful share still leave without a credential. Graduates leave owing a median of $9,818 — modest by four-year standards.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.33 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Academics
Six-year completion sits at 47%, meaning about one in two students who enroll leave without finishing. Retention of 64% means a meaningful slice of each entering class does not return. Retention and completion are close, which places the gap between entering and finishing almost entirely in year one. A 13:1 ratio points to small classes and accessible faculty. As a public community college, the relevant comparison is other two-year schools rather than the national average across all institutions.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 557 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price is $4,897 a year after grant aid — low for a four-year institution, though your own figure depends on aid eligibility. Net price varies modestly by income — $3,718 at $0–30k against $4,510 at $110k+ — so the average is a fair guide for most families. 92% of students get grant aid averaging $8,726, so the published price is a poor guide to what most pay. 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 · 134 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 | $3,718 |
| $30–48k | $4,834 |
| $48–75k | $6,439 |
| $75–110k | $8,876 |
| $110k+ | $4,510 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 132 of these 557 students, totalling $726,918 — an average of $5,507 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Izard 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)