10-yr median earnings
$36,977
Federal aid recipients only
Public · Hickory, North Carolina
Catawba Valley Community College
Catawba Valley Community College is a public institution in Hickory, North Carolina. as a public institution, published Scorecard outcomes are the federal Title-IV cohort view of former students — not every graduate and not a guarantee for any one enrollee.
- $10,528
- Avg net price / yr
- $36,977
- 10-yr median earnings
- 35.4%
- 150%-time completion
The verdict
Catawba Valley Community College posts modest former-student earnings.
According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.
- 37th pct.
- former-student earnings, US
- 35.4%
- 150%-time completion
- +14%
- earnings, 6→10 yrs
City: Small
Carnegie: Associate's
Institution data retrieved July 2026; field-of-study data retrieved March 2026.
How to read this Catawba Valley Community College profile
Figures above come from IPEDS institution records published through the College Scorecard (retrieved July 2026 for institution fields; March 2026 for field-of-study). Peer groups and cost cohorts follow IPEDS ownership sector, Carnegie class ("Associate's Colleges: High Transfer-Mixed Traditional/Nontraditional"), and locale, not an editorial shortlist.
Average net price subtracts grant and scholarship aid from cost of attendance for full-time, first-time undergraduate Title IV recipients. It is a defined cohort average, not a personalized price; income-band fields add context but do not replace the school's current net-price calculator.
Earnings use Treasury-linked records for federally aided former students who were working and not enrolled in the measurement year (completers and noncompleters). IPEDS completion and retention use separate first-time, full-time cohorts, so those denominators are not the earnings cohort. Read cost, completion, and earnings as distinct historical measures, not a causal verdict or individual forecast.
College Value Score
C-
College Value Score
52/100
Catawba Valley Community College
A 6-metric composite of earnings, cost, and completion outcomes benchmarked against every reporting US college, not a ranking of teaching quality, campus life, or fit for any individual student. See the full methodology.
Earnings F
$36,977
10-year median former-student earnings
Net Price B+
$10,528
Average annual cost after grants and aid
Completion Rate F
35.4%
Completion within 150% of normal time
Debt A+
$4,938
Median federal debt at graduation
Loan Repayment D
54.6%
Borrowers repaying loans within 3 years
Retention N/A
N/A
First-year students returning for year two
Each axis is the percentile score shown in the breakdown at left; the shape shows this school's overall profile at a glance.
Avg net price
$10,528
After grants and scholarships
150%-time completion
35.4%
Full-time, first-time cohort
150%-time completion vs portal median (57.1%) 35.4%
Less-than-four-year-institution cohort
College ROI Quadrant - Catawba Valley Community College vs peers
Each dot is a college plotted by 10-year median earnings (x-axis) vs average net price (y-axis), colored by completion within 150% of normal time. Bottom-right = high earnings/lower price; top-left = lower earnings/higher price.
How Catawba Valley Community College ranks nationally
Where this school's former-student earnings fall within the full national distribution of every US college that reports to the College Scorecard, not just its peer set.
Catawba Valley Community College: former-student earnings vs. every US college
10-year median earnings, College Scorecard
$36,977 37th percentile higher than 37% of 5,103 US colleges
Each bar is a $20K-wide band; taller bars hold more US colleges. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard · Mar–Jul 2026 retrievals
| Metric | Catawba Valley Community College | National rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-yr median earnings | $36,977 | #3190 of 5103 | 37th |
| Average net price | $10,528 | #1223 of 5020 | 76th (lower is better) |
| 150%-time completion | 35.4% | #3934 of 4858 | 19th |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 2,741 | #1184 of 5462 | 78th |
National ranks count every operating US college reporting each metric to the College Scorecard, separate from the earnings histogram above.
Quick Facts
2,741
Undergraduate enrollment
-
Acceptance rate
-
SAT average
35.4%
150%-time completion
$36,977
10-yr median earnings
-
First-year retention
How Catawba Valley Community College ranks in North Carolina
State rank among 147 reporting North Carolina colleges with College Scorecard data, a separate lens from the national distribution above.
| Metric | Catawba Valley Community College | State rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-yr median earnings | $36,977 | #64 of 147 | 56th |
| Average net price | $10,528 | #55 of 146 | 62nd (lower is better) |
| 150%-time completion | 35.4% | #111 of 142 | 22nd |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 2,741 | #33 of 153 | 78th |
Highest former-student earnings in North Carolina
| # | School | 10-yr earnings | Net price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Duke University | $97,800 | $29,612 |
| 2 | Chamberlain University-North Carolina | $92,405 | $38,436 |
| 3 | Davidson College | $81,400 | $17,379 |
| 4 | Wake Forest University | $78,158 | $28,719 |
| 5 | Elon University | $74,545 | $41,555 |
| 6 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | $72,200 | $11,655 |
| 7 | North Carolina State University at Raleigh | $68,758 | $17,303 |
| 8 | Carolinas College of Health Sciences | $64,624 | - |
| 9 | Galen Health Institutes-Asheville | $61,480 | $28,602 |
| 10 | High Point University | $61,389 | $38,707 |
| 11 | Cabarrus College of Health Sciences | $58,708 | $17,618 |
| 12 | Queens University of Charlotte | $57,673 | $30,857 |
| 64 | Catawba Valley Community CollegeThis school | $36,977 | $10,528 |
Costs & Financial Aid
Net price by family income at Catawba Valley Community College
Average annual net price after grants; Title IV recipient cohort by income bracket
- $0 – $30k
$0 – $30k
$9,170 net price / yr
- $30k – $48k
$30k – $48k
$9,639 net price / yr
- $48k – $75k
$48k – $75k
$13,129 net price / yr
What this shows Need-based aid pulls net price down at lower brackets at Catawba Valley Community College - compare the bar for your income band, not the overall average alone.
Tuition & Net Price
| In-State Tuition | $2,427 |
| Out-of-State Tuition | $7,803 |
| Average Net Price | $10,528 |
28.3%
Pell Grant Rate
0.0%
Federal Loan Rate
$4,938
Median Debt
$52/mo
Monthly Payment
Net price at Catawba Valley Community College swings rather than trends
Across 11 reported years between 2013 and 2023, the average net price here has ranged from $6,044 to $11,076 without settling into a rise or a fall. Comparing only the first and last years would read as -15.0%, but the years in between do not follow that line, so the honest summary is the range rather than a trend. Budget against the upper end, not the average.
Lowest year
$6,044
Highest year
$11,076
Most recent (2023)
$9,415
11 reported years. Nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation.
2013 · $11,0762023 · $9,415
Over the same years, enrollment went -7.0% (3,781 → 3,517 students).
Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, per-year fields (2013–2023). Net price is the average cost after grant and scholarship aid for federally-aided undergraduates.
Student Demographics
Race & ethnicity
Student body at a glance
58.2%
Female
49.5%
First Generation
Outcomes
$32,508
Median Earnings (6yr)
44.5%
Earning Over $25K
54.6%
Loan Repayment, Completers (3yr)
Outcomes & debt snapshot
| Measure | Cohort / horizon | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Completion within 150% of normal time | First-time, full-time | 35.4% |
| Median earnings | 6 years after entry | $32,508 |
| Median earnings | 10 years after entry | $36,977 |
| Share earning over $25,000 | Working, not enrolled | 44.5% |
| Loan repayment rate | Completers, 3 years after leaving | 54.6% |
| Median federal student debt | At completion | $4,938 |
| Estimated monthly payment | Standard 10-year plan | $52/mo |
Programs & Earnings
Field-of-study summary by credential
| Credential | Programs | Award count | Avg earnings | Top earnings | Avg debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Associate's | 9 | 838 | $48,428 | $66,385 | $5,500 |
| Certificate | 7 | 441 | $41,474 | $53,870 | - |
Top programs at Catawba Valley Community College by completer earnings
Median earnings of program completers, College Scorecard field-of-study file
- Registered Nursing, Nursin…
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
$66,385 median earnings
- Dental Support Services an…
Dental Support Services and Allied Professions
$66,069 median earnings
- Allied Health Diagnostic, …
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions
$58,094 median earnings
- Allied Health Diagnostic, …
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions
$53,870 median earnings
- Criminal Justice and Corre…
Criminal Justice and Corrections
$43,919 median earnings
- Precision Metal Working
Precision Metal Working
$43,883 median earnings
- Accounting and Related Ser…
Accounting and Related Services
$43,703 median earnings
- Business Administration, M…
Business Administration, Management and Operations
$43,380 median earnings
What this shows The highest-earning programs at a school are not necessarily its most popular ones - a small specialized program can post strong median earnings without reflecting the outcome most students here actually see.
Nearby Schools
Explore Data-Matched Colleges
Matches use Scorecard measures among reporting colleges — not state-system recommendations or geographic proximity.
Similar Enrollment and Sector
Other Public institutions closest in reported enrollment, preferring the same Carnegie classification.
Similar Reported Net Price
Other Public institutions with the nearest reported average net price.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the admissions statistics for Catawba Valley Community College? ▼
Catawba Valley Community College is a public institution in Hickory, North Carolina. Undergraduate enrollment is 2,741 students.
How much do Catawba Valley Community College former students earn? ▼
Federally aided former students at Catawba Valley Community College who were working and not enrolled had median earnings of $36,977 ten years after entry; the cohort is not limited to graduates. Six years after entry, the corresponding median is $32,508.
How much does Catawba Valley Community College cost? ▼
The average net price at Catawba Valley Community College is $10,528. In-state tuition is $2,427 and out-of-state tuition is $7,803. Median student debt at graduation is $4,938.
What is the graduation rate at Catawba Valley Community College? ▼
Catawba Valley Community College has a 35.4% completion rate within 150% of normal program time at a less-than-four-year institution.
Is Catawba Valley Community College worth the student debt? ▼
The median student debt at Catawba Valley Community College is $4,938, while former students earn a median of $36,977 ten years after enrollment. That debt represents about 13% of those annual earnings. Among borrowers who completed their program, 54.6% are repaying their loans within 3 years. Estimated monthly loan payment is $52.
Sources & methodology
Public-college profiles lean on IPEDS enrollment and Scorecard Title-IV outcomes. State appropriations are outside this page; the figures below are the federal cohort measures only.
Every number is read live from the Mar–Jul 2026 Scorecard/IPEDS retrievals. Public institutions often enroll large Title-IV cohorts, so medians can be stable — still cohort averages, never a personal forecast. Read the full methodology for how the data is sourced, computed, and verified.
- College Scorecard, U.S. Department of Education - former-student earnings, cost & completion (collegescorecard.ed.gov).
- IPEDS, National Center for Education Statistics - enrollment, admissions, Carnegie class & demographics (nces.ed.gov/ipeds).
- U.S. Treasury / IRS earnings linkage - median earnings 6 & 10 years after enrollment for federal-aid recipients (irs.gov).
- College Scorecard, Field of Study - program-level (credential) earnings & debt (collegescorecard.ed.gov).
- Federal Student Aid (Title IV / NSLDS) - U.S. Department of Education - net price, student debt & aid-recipient repayment outcomes (studentaid.gov).
Where to go next from Catawba Valley Community College
- Compare Catawba Valley Community College against schools with similar outcomes at a lower average net price.Find similar schools that cost less
- Browse every reporting college in North Carolina side by side.Browse North Carolina
- See how fields of study differ on former-student earnings and debt.Explore programs
Public-college Scorecard figures are historical Title-IV cohort averages — confirm current tuition, aid, and admissions rules with the institution before deciding.
Every figure on PlainCollege is rendered directly from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard data, no number is typed in by an editor. Public-institution profiles compile Scorecard Title-IV earnings, IPEDS enrollment/admissions, and Treasury linkage fields — no editor-typed figures. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Review the public data changelog. Data current as of Mar–Jul 2026 retrievals.