Piedmont Technical College
Public Community College in Greenwood, SC. Six-year graduation rate 33%. Median 10-year earnings $35,768.
Median earnings ten years after entry come to $35,768, below what most undergraduate institutions return — the central fact to weigh against cost here. Only 33% finish within six years, so roughly two in three students leave without the credential they enrolled for. Borrowing stays contained, with median debt at graduation of $15,000.
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
- ! Graduation rate 33% — below national average
Academics
A six-year graduation rate of 33% means finishing is closer to the exception than the rule. 61% of full-time first-years come back for year two, so about two in five are gone before sophomore year. That gap between coming back and finishing is where this school loses people — after the first year, not during it. The part-time picture is harder: 39% return, against 61% full-time. A 18:1 ratio is unremarkable; expect a mix of lecture halls and seminars.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 3,988 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
At $11,476 a year on average after grant aid, cost is low here relative to most undergraduate institutions. Net price varies modestly by income — $11,778 at $0–30k against $13,299 at $110k+ — so the average is a fair guide for most families. 95% of students get grant aid averaging $6,029, so the published price is a poor guide to what most pay. About 34% borrow federally, roughly the national pattern.
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 · 597 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 | $11,778 |
| $30–48k | $10,878 |
| $48–75k | $10,420 |
| $75–110k | $11,552 |
| $110k+ | $13,299 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 1,350 of these 3,988 students, totalling $9,013,814 — an average of $6,677 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Greenwood 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)