South Seattle College
Public Community College in Seattle, WA. Six-year graduation rate 31%. Median 10-year earnings $44,486.
Ten years after entry, the median South Seattle College student earns $44,486 — a solidly middle-of-the-pack result for an undergraduate institution. Completion is the weak point: 31% graduate within six years. It also moves people — 3.3% of students climb from the bottom fifth of the income distribution to the top.
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 31% — below national average
Academics
A six-year graduation rate of 31% means finishing is closer to the exception than the rule. Transfer-out runs to 15% — common enough at this school that the completion rate is measuring a smaller group than the entering class. A 33:1 ratio means students need to be deliberate about getting faculty time. As a public four-year university, the relevant comparison is other four-year schools rather than the national average across all institutions. The undergraduate population is 5,295 — big enough for a real range of programs, small enough to navigate.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 1,495 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price is $8,012 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: $5,744 at $0–30k, $10,615 at $110k+. About 62% get grants averaging $7,423, so plan on the possibility of paying closer to full price. 13% 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 · 304 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 | $5,744 |
| $30–48k | $4,758 |
| $48–75k | $7,276 |
| $75–110k | $7,409 |
| $110k+ | $10,615 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 191 of these 1,495 students, totalling $1,187,071 — an average of $6,215 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (King 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)