Wilkes Community College
Public Community College in Wilkesboro, NC. Six-year graduation rate 55%. Median 10-year earnings $34,728.
Students who entered Wilkes Community College reach a median of $34,728 a decade later, a figure that trails the typical four-year outcome. 55% finish within six years — respectable, though a meaningful share still leave without a credential. Graduates leave owing a median of $7,625 — modest by four-year standards.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.22 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Academics
Six-year completion sits at 55%, meaning about two in five students who enroll leave without finishing. First-year retention is 69% — the single largest point of attrition on this campus. Retention and graduation track closely, so most of the attrition shows up in the first year rather than after it. A 8:1 ratio points to small classes and accessible faculty. This is a public community college, so read every rate on this page against that peer group specifically.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 2,010 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Students pay an average of $658 annually, well below typical undergraduate net price. The income table below is the number that matters — $-1,444 at $0–30k versus $6,653 at $110k+. 72% of students receive grant aid, averaging $7,650 — 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 · 370 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 | $-1,444 |
| $30–48k | $-992 |
| $48–75k | $1,679 |
| $75–110k | $4,528 |
| $110k+ | $6,653 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Wilkes 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)