10-yr median earnings
$40,256
Federal aid recipients only
Public · Columbia, Tennessee
Columbia State Community College
Columbia State Community College is a public institution in Columbia, Tennessee. 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.
- $4,734
- Avg net price / yr
- $40,256
- 10-yr median earnings
- 30.2%
- 150%-time completion
The verdict
Columbia State Community College posts modest former-student earnings.
According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.
- 48th pct.
- former-student earnings, US
- 30.2%
- 150%-time completion
- +14%
- earnings, 6→10 yrs
Town: Fringe
Carnegie: Associate's
Institution data retrieved July 2026; field-of-study data retrieved March 2026.
How to read this Columbia State 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-High Traditional"), 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
57/100
Columbia State 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 D
$40,256
10-year median former-student earnings
Net Price A+
$4,734
Average annual cost after grants and aid
Completion Rate F
30.2%
Completion within 150% of normal time
Debt A-
$8,500
Median federal debt at graduation
Loan Repayment C+
66.3%
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
$4,734
After grants and scholarships
150%-time completion
30.2%
Full-time, first-time cohort
150%-time completion vs portal median (57.1%) 30.2%
Less-than-four-year-institution cohort
College ROI Quadrant - Columbia State 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 Columbia State 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.
Columbia State Community College: former-student earnings vs. every US college
10-year median earnings, College Scorecard
$40,256 48th percentile higher than 48% 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 | Columbia State Community College | National rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-yr median earnings | $40,256 | #2629 of 5103 | 48th |
| Average net price | $4,734 | #288 of 5020 | 94th (lower is better) |
| 150%-time completion | 30.2% | #4274 of 4858 | 12th |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 3,897 | #915 of 5462 | 83rd |
National ranks count every operating US college reporting each metric to the College Scorecard, separate from the earnings histogram above.
Quick Facts
3,897
Undergraduate enrollment
-
Acceptance rate
-
SAT average
30.2%
150%-time completion
$40,256
10-yr median earnings
-
First-year retention
How Columbia State Community College ranks in Tennessee
State rank among 120 reporting Tennessee colleges with College Scorecard data, a separate lens from the national distribution above.
| Metric | Columbia State Community College | State rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-yr median earnings | $40,256 | #52 of 120 | 57th |
| Average net price | $4,734 | #5 of 124 | 96th (lower is better) |
| 150%-time completion | 30.2% | #108 of 117 | 8th |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 3,897 | #21 of 130 | 84th |
Highest former-student earnings in Tennessee
| # | School | 10-yr earnings | Net price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vanderbilt University | $91,565 | $15,846 |
| 2 | Baptist Health Sciences University | $72,529 | $11,212 |
| 3 | Rhodes College | $66,651 | $28,585 |
| 4 | The University of Tennessee Health Science Center | $66,318 | - |
| 5 | Jersey College - Cleveland | $66,087 | - |
| 6 | Jersey College - Knoxville | $66,087 | - |
| 7 | The University of the South | $64,911 | $27,872 |
| 8 | Meridian Institute of Surgical Assisting | $62,978 | - |
| 9 | Galen Health Institutes-Nashville Campus | $61,480 | $27,267 |
| 10 | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | $60,249 | $18,976 |
| 11 | King University | $59,831 | $22,347 |
| 12 | Cumberland University | $57,687 | $18,759 |
| 52 | Columbia State Community CollegeThis school | $40,256 | $4,734 |
Costs & Financial Aid
Net price by family income at Columbia State Community College
Average annual net price after grants; Title IV recipient cohort by income bracket
- $0 – $30k
$0 – $30k
$4,083 net price / yr
- $30k – $48k
$30k – $48k
$4,125 net price / yr
- $48k – $75k
$48k – $75k
$5,995 net price / yr
- $110k+
$110k+
$6,252 net price / yr
What this shows Need-based aid pulls net price down at lower brackets at Columbia State Community College - compare the bar for your income band, not the overall average alone.
Tuition & Net Price
| In-State Tuition | $5,296 |
| Out-of-State Tuition | $18,112 |
| Average Net Price | $4,734 |
29.8%
Pell Grant Rate
5.2%
Federal Loan Rate
$8,500
Median Debt
$90/mo
Monthly Payment
Net price at Columbia State Community College swings rather than trends
Across 11 reported years between 2013 and 2023, the average net price here has ranged from $4,576 to $7,644 without settling into a rise or a fall. Comparing only the first and last years would read as -27.4%, 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
$4,576
Highest year
$7,644
Most recent (2023)
$4,576
11 reported years. Nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation.
2013 · $6,3002023 · $4,576
Over the same years, enrollment went -14.8% (4,317 → 3,679 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
63.0%
Female
44.0%
First Generation
Outcomes
$35,400
Median Earnings (6yr)
51.2%
Earning Over $25K
66.3%
Loan Repayment, Completers (3yr)
Outcomes & debt snapshot
| Measure | Cohort / horizon | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Completion within 150% of normal time | First-time, full-time | 30.2% |
| Median earnings | 6 years after entry | $35,400 |
| Median earnings | 10 years after entry | $40,256 |
| Share earning over $25,000 | Working, not enrolled | 51.2% |
| Loan repayment rate | Completers, 3 years after leaving | 66.3% |
| Median federal student debt | At completion | $8,500 |
| Estimated monthly payment | Standard 10-year plan | $90/mo |
Programs & Earnings
Field-of-study summary by credential
| Credential | Programs | Award count | Avg earnings | Top earnings | Avg debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Associate's | 9 | 897 | $50,373 | $78,499 | $9,367 |
| Certificate | 1 | 119 | $54,816 | $54,816 | $5,375 |
Top programs at Columbia State 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
$78,499 median earnings
- Allied Health Diagnostic, …
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions
$56,642 median earnings
- Computer and Information S…
Computer and Information Sciences, General
$56,354 median earnings
- Allied Health Diagnostic, …
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions
$54,816 median earnings
- Education, General
Education, General
$41,890 median earnings
- Business Administration, M…
Business Administration, Management and Operations
$41,027 median earnings
- Liberal Arts and Sciences,…
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities
$40,271 median earnings
- Veterinary/Animal Health T…
Veterinary/Animal Health Technologies/Technicians
$37,930 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.
| Program | Credential | Completers | Median Earnings | Median Debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | Associate's | 87 | $78,499 | $11,500 |
| Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions | Associate's | 37 | $56,642 | $9,000 |
| Computer and Information Sciences, General | Associate's | 25 | $56,354 | - |
| Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions | Certificate | 119 | $54,816 | $5,375 |
| Education, General | Associate's | 19 | $41,890 | - |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | Associate's | 37 | $41,027 | - |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities | Associate's | 664 | $40,271 | $7,601 |
| Veterinary/Animal Health Technologies/Technicians | Associate's | 16 | $37,930 | - |
| Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services | Associate's | 7 | - | - |
| Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions | Associate's | 5 | - | - |
Nearby Schools
The University of Tennessee Southern
Pulaski, TN
864 students
Tennessee College of Applied Technology-Pulaski
Pulaski, TN
246 students
Tennessee College of Applied Technology-Hohenwald
Hohenwald, TN
346 students
Franklin Hair Academy School of Cosmetology
Franklin, TN
116 students
Lawrenceburg Technical College
Lawrenceburg, TN
128 students
Explore Data-Matched Colleges
Matches use Scorecard measures among reporting colleges — not state-system recommendations or geographic proximity.
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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 Columbia State Community College? ▼
Columbia State Community College is a public institution in Columbia, Tennessee. Undergraduate enrollment is 3,897 students.
How much do Columbia State Community College former students earn? ▼
Federally aided former students at Columbia State Community College who were working and not enrolled had median earnings of $40,256 ten years after entry; the cohort is not limited to graduates. Six years after entry, the corresponding median is $35,400.
How much does Columbia State Community College cost? ▼
The average net price at Columbia State Community College is $4,734. In-state tuition is $5,296 and out-of-state tuition is $18,112. Median student debt at graduation is $8,500.
What is the graduation rate at Columbia State Community College? ▼
Columbia State Community College has a 30.2% completion rate within 150% of normal program time at a less-than-four-year institution.
Is Columbia State Community College worth the student debt? ▼
The median student debt at Columbia State Community College is $8,500, while former students earn a median of $40,256 ten years after enrollment. That debt represents about 21% of those annual earnings. Among borrowers who completed their program, 66.3% are repaying their loans within 3 years. Estimated monthly loan payment is $90.
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 Columbia State Community College
- Compare Columbia State Community College against schools with similar outcomes at a lower average net price.Find similar schools that cost less
- Browse every reporting college in Tennessee side by side.Browse Tennessee
- 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.