San Jose
City College
Public Community College in San Jose, CA. Six-year graduation rate 34%. Median 10-year earnings $46,215.
The median ten-year earnings figure of $46,215 sits near the national middle rather than at either extreme. Completion is the weak point: 34% graduate within six years.
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 34% — below national average
Academics
Completion is the problem here: 34% graduate within six years. First-year retention is 65% — 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. Retention drops to 29% for part-time students, a gap worth weighing if full-time study is not realistic. 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 7,039 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Net price lands at $19,585 a year on average, neither cheap nor punishing. The gap between the $0–30k and $110k+ bands is narrow ($16,430 versus $20,198), meaning aid is not strongly need-weighted. 64% of students receive grant aid, averaging $3,157 — common but not automatic. 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 · 562 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 | $16,430 |
| $30–48k | $15,652 |
| $48–75k | $18,524 |
| $75–110k | $22,207 |
| $110k+ | $20,198 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 49 of these 7,039 students, totalling $324,312 — an average of $6,619 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Santa Clara 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)