Riverside City College
Public Community College in Riverside, CA. Six-year graduation rate 37%. Median 10-year earnings $41,091.
Ten-year median earnings of $41,091 are on the low side, which raises the bar for what this degree needs to cost. Completion is the weak point: 37% graduate within six years. Borrowing stays contained, with median debt at graduation of $8,000.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.19 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Academics
Completion is the problem here: 37% graduate within six years. Retention of 70% means a meaningful slice of each entering class does not return. That gap between coming back and finishing is where this school loses people — after the first year, not during it. Part-time students fare worse, returning at 45% — relevant if you plan to work while enrolled. At 26:1, instructor access is thin — worth probing on a campus visit.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 17,361 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
At $10,174 a year on average after grant aid, cost is low here relative to most undergraduate institutions. Net price varies modestly by income — $6,931 at $0–30k against $13,880 at $110k+ — so the average is a fair guide for most families. About 69% get grants averaging $4,349, so plan on the possibility of paying closer to full price. 1% borrow federally — a low rate, though it covers federal loans only.
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 · 2,171 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 | $6,931 |
| $30–48k | $7,371 |
| $48–75k | $10,221 |
| $75–110k | $12,755 |
| $110k+ | $13,880 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 188 of these 17,361 students, totalling $1,237,801 — an average of $6,584 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Riverside 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)