Two years in
San Antonio before your bachelor's
You're deciding whether to spend your first two years at St Philip's College before finishing a bachelor's degree elsewhere in Texas. That choice comes down to real numbers: what transfer looks like from here, what it costs, and what earnings tend to follow.
17,300 undergrads, 34% transfer out by year 8, median $38k 10-yr earnings, $9,500 median debt.
A San Antonio CC with a strong 34% transfer-out rate and low net price
St Philip's College enrolls about 17,300 undergraduates in San Antonio, with 86% attending part-time. The eight-year transfer-out rate is 34% — well above the typical community college range, even with a part-time-heavy population that usually drags the number down. Net price lands at $4,273 annually, median borrower debt is $9,500, and the three-year loan default rate is 0%. Median earnings ten years out are $38k. The program mix leans hard toward trades — Automotive, Welding, Diesel, Electrician, HVAC — alongside a General Studies transfer track that produced 490 completions, the largest single program.
St Philip's College sits in San Antonio and enrolls roughly 17,300 undergraduates, with 86% attending part-time — a heavy part-time share that usually signals slower timelines and diluted outcome data. The eight-year transfer-out rate here is 34%, which stands out. That figure sits above the typical community college range of 15–25% and is unusually strong given the part-time mix. General Studies is the single largest program at 490 completions, but the rest of the top ten leans toward skilled trades — Automotive (326), Welding (189), Diesel (185), Electrician (143), HVAC (91), Instrumentation (81). Net price is $4,273, median borrower debt is $9,500, and the three-year loan default rate is 0%. Median earnings ten years out are $38k. For a San Antonio student weighing the transfer path, the cost and transfer fundamentals here are genuinely workable.
What this CC teaches at scale
| Program | Completions |
|---|---|
| General Studies. | 490 |
| Automobile/Automotive Mechanics Technology/Technician. | 326 |
| Welding Technology/Welder. | 189 |
| Diesel Mechanics Technology/Technician. | 185 |
| Electrician. | 143 |
| Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance. | 119 |
| Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineering Technology/Technician. | 91 |
| Baking and Pastry Arts/Baker/Pastry Chef. | 90 |
| Instrumentation Technology/Technician. | 81 |
| Culinary Arts/Chef Training. | 75 |
Source · IPEDS completions (all undergraduate credentials).
Where Texas transfers tend to go
Reflects state-aggregated IPEDS transfer-in volume — CC-specific destinations are not publicly available from IPEDS or the College Scorecard.
Frequently asked
- Is St Philip's College a good place to start a bachelor's degree?
- The data makes a cautiously affirmative case. St Philip's eight-year transfer-out rate is 34%, which is above the typical community college range — a real signal that students who enroll here reach the transfer step at a meaningful clip. Net price is $4,273 annually, one of the lower figures among Texas community colleges, and median borrower debt is $9,500 with a 0% three-year loan default rate. Median earnings ten years out are $38k, modest but consistent with a population where 86% attend part-time on extended timelines. The General Studies track produced 490 completions, indicating real infrastructure for transfer-prep students. The honest caveat: the heavy trade-program presence means some students are here for a career credential, not transfer — so match your path to a program with a clear four-year on-ramp.
- How does St Philip's College's transfer-out rate compare to typical community colleges?
- St Philip's eight-year transfer-out rate is 34%. National research places the average community college transfer rate in the 15–25% range, so St Philip's sits well above the upper end of that band. An additional 26% of students completed a credential at St Philip's itself within eight years, and 1% remained enrolled. Taken together, roughly 61% of the cohort either transferred or finished a credential at the college — a genuinely functional outcome profile. The 34% transfer rate is even more notable given that 86% of students attend part-time, a population that reliably pulls transfer figures down. Part-time students juggle work and life alongside coursework, which usually extends timelines and causes stop-outs before transfer requirements are met.
- What programs does St Philip's College teach at meaningful scale?
- St Philip's largest program is General Studies with 490 completions — the academic track most aligned with a transfer plan. After that, the program mix leans sharply toward skilled trades. Automotive/Automotive Mechanics Technology produced 326 completions, Welding 189, Diesel Mechanics 185, Electrician 143, and HVAC/Refrigeration Engineering Technology 91. Computer and Information Systems Security came in at 119. Baking and Pastry Arts (90), Instrumentation Technology (81), and Culinary Arts (75) round out the top ten. This is a genuinely hybrid CC — a transfer-prep track sitting alongside one of the deeper vocational program rosters you will find at a community college of this size. If your goal is a four-year transfer, the General Studies volume tells you advising and course infrastructure exist. If your goal is a trade credential, the depth here is unusually strong.
Methodology — Transfer signals reflect IPEDS Outcome Measures 8-year cohorts; earnings and debt come from the College Scorecard. Destinations are state-aggregated; we do not claim CC-specific transfer destinations without authoritative per-student tracking data.