Stanly Community College
Public Community College in Albemarle, NC. Six-year graduation rate 48%. Median 10-year earnings $36,686.
Ten-year median earnings of $36,686 are on the low side, which raises the bar for what this degree needs to cost. 48% finish within six years — respectable, though a meaningful share still leave without a credential.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ! Mobility score 1.0 — limited economic uplift documented
Academics
Six-year completion sits at 48%, meaning about one in two students who enroll leave without finishing. First-year retention is 63% — the single largest point of attrition on this campus. Retention and completion are close, which places the gap between entering and finishing almost entirely in year one. Retention drops to 52% for part-time students, a gap worth weighing if full-time study is not realistic. At 11:1, students get materially more instructor contact than at a typical public university.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 1,430 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
At $6,380 a year on average after grant aid, cost is low here relative to most undergraduate institutions. Income makes less difference than usual: $5,640 at $0–30k, $5,570 at $75–110k. 59% of students receive grant aid, averaging $8,637 — common but not automatic.
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 · 133 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 | $5,640 |
| $30–48k | $5,354 |
| $48–75k | $7,252 |
| $75–110k | $5,570 |
| $110k+ | — |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Stanly 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)