Cowley County Community College is a public institution offering associate degrees based in Arkansas City, Kansas. It enrolls 1,543 students (a mid-sized student body), according to IPEDS 2023-24 data. Below you'll find verified data on admissions, cost, student outcomes, programs offered, and what graduates typically earn, all pulled from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard and IPEDS.
US College Data scores each college on four pillars (outcomes, value, affordability, and selectivity) on a 0–100 scale, ranked within its peer group (2-Year). Scores are calculated from verified College Scorecard and IPEDS data, not opinion or paid placement. Where data is missing, that pillar isn't scored.
Good
68/100
UCD Score · 2-Year
Outcomes42
Value70
Affordability59
Selectivity—
Admissions & Acceptance Rate
As a two-year college, Cowley County Community College generally admits all qualified applicants.
Acceptance Rate
Open
SAT Range (25th–75th)
—
Not reported
ACT Range (25th–75th)
—
Not reported
Cost & Financial Aid
The real cost of attending Cowley County Community College isn't the sticker price. It's the net price,which is what most students actually pay after grants and scholarships. According to College Scorecard 2023-24 data, the average net price is $7,175 per year. That's well below the typical net price for public colleges nationally.
Average Net Price
$7,175
Per year, after typical aid
Receive Pell Grants
35%
Need-based federal aid
Receive Federal Loans
22%
Borrowing to attend
Full Cost Breakdown
Published cost of attendance, the sticker price before grants and scholarships. Most students underestimate room & board and other expenses.
Tuition & Fees (in-state)
$4,800
Tuition & Fees (out-of-state)
$6,600
Room & Board (on-campus)
$6,600
Room & Board (off-campus)
$7,500
Books & Supplies
$1,500
Other Expenses (on-campus)
$4,500
Other Expenses (off-campus)
$4,500
Total Cost of Attendance
$13,534
Net Price by Family Income
Aid is need-based, so net price varies by family income. Here's what each bracket typically pays after grants and scholarships.
Under $30,000
$6,305
$30,001 – $48,000
$5,566
$48,001 – $75,000
$8,017
$75,001 – $110,000
$8,589
Over $110,000
$9,632
Debt at Graduation
Cumulative federal-loan debt across the full borrowing distribution. The 10th and 90th percentiles bracket the typical range; the median sits in the middle.
$1,75010%percentile
$2,75025%percentile
$8,000Medianpercentile
$9,50075%percentile
$15,75090%percentile
Median Debt by Student Type
Median federal-loan debt at graduation broken down by demographic. Each slice's size is proportional to the dollar amount that group typically borrows.
GroupDebtvs Median
Pell recipients $5,250
↓ $2,750
No Pell $5,250
↓ $2,750
Dependent students $4,500
↓ $3,500
Independent students $6,462
↓ $1,538
Female students $5,500
↓ $2,500
Male students $4,500
↓ $3,500
Worth knowing:
Students who don't finish leave with a median debt of $4,500, less than completers ($8,000), but still a meaningful obligation without a degree in hand.
Graduation Rate & Retention
23% of full-time students who enrolled at Cowley County Community College graduate within six years, and 63% return for their second year, per IPEDS 2023-24 completion data.
6-Year Graduation Rate
23%
Of students who graduate within six years
First-Year Retention
63%
Returning for their second year
What this means:
Lower than typical completion. Worth asking the school how they support students who fall behind.
After Graduation: Earnings & Outcomes
According to College Scorecard 2023-24 data, students who entered Cowley County Community College earn a median of $37,723 ten years after first enrolling. That's close to the national median for U.S. colleges.
Median Earnings (10 yrs)
$37,723
Earning > $25K
62%
10 yrs after entry
Earnings Growth After Graduation
Median annual earnings 6, 8, and 10 years after students first enrolled.
Earnings by Demographic
Mean annual earnings 10 years after entry, segmented by demographic. Reveals gaps the headline median can't show.
By Gender
Female graduates
$31,200
Median earnings for female grads ten years after first enrolling here.
Male graduates
$44,200
Median earnings for male grads ten years after first enrolling here.
By Family Income at Entry
Family income (lowest third)
$32,400
Earnings of grads from the bottom-third of family incomes at entry.
Family income (middle third)
$39,100
Earnings of grads from the middle-third of family incomes at entry.
Family income (highest third)
$41,200
Earnings of grads from the top-third of family incomes at entry.
The gender gap:
Male graduates earn $13,000, about 29% more than female graduates ten years out. The gap reflects industry mix, role choice, and structural pay differences that exist across most US colleges.
Loan Repayment Progression
Share of completer-cohort borrowers paying down at least $1 of principal at the 1-, 3-, 5-, and 7-year mark. Climbing rates show graduates settling into careers and managing debt; flat or declining rates are a warning.
Climbing: graduates increasingly paying down debt ↑
20.1 pts
across 6 years
What this signals:
Moderate. Only 69% of graduates are paying down principal seven years out.
Who Studies Here
Cowley County Community College is home to 1,543 students, a mid-sized community. Some distinctive traits: 40% are first-generation college students.
Total Enrolled
1,543
Part-Time
30%
First-Generation
40%
Race & Ethnicity Breakdown
Undergraduate student body composition reported to the US Department of Education.
GroupShareStudents
White 61.1%943
Hispanic 13.6%210
Other 8.7%135
International 6.5%100
Black 6.3%97
Asian 1.0%15
Student Life & Campus Culture
Where students live, learn, and connect at Cowley County Community College. The campus setting, housing profile, and signals that shape day-to-day life here.
Setting
Town: DistantArkansas City, Kansas
Housing
Partly residential516 beds available
Adult Learners
25%of students are 25 or older
Athletics
NCAAathletic-conference member
Academic Calendar
Semesterscheduling structure
What You Can Study
Cowley County Community College offers
a varied set of programs:
25 distinct programs across
11 majors.
Below are its strongest majors, each with flagship programs and typical earnings.
Open a major to explore it in depth, or browse the full program catalog.
The student-to-faculty ratio at Cowley County Community College is 16:1, close to the national average.
Student : Faculty
16:1
Students per instructional faculty member
Instruction / Student
$5,367
Annual instructional spending per enrolled student
Avg Faculty Salary
$48,563
9-month equivalent across all ranks
Faculty by Rank
58 instructional faculty across 1 ranks.
The rank mix shows how many senior faculty are teaching versus contingent or junior staff, with average salary equated to a 9-month contract.
Rank
Faculty Count
Share
Avg Salary
Instructors
58
100%
$48,563
Pros & Cons of Cowley County Community College
A quick at-a-glance summary of how Cowley County Community College tends to stack up for prospective students,weighing its data, size, setting, and cost profile together.
PROS
Very affordable net price after aid
Open admissions
Reasonable class sizes
Low typical debt at graduation
First-gen-friendly student body
CONS
Low completion rate, many students don't graduate within six years
First-year retention is below typical
Earnings outcomes are on the lower side
Best for:
Based on the data, Cowley County Community College is a fit for
students who want a clear path to start college without a competitive admissions barrier; families focused on keeping net cost low.
Frequently Asked Questions about Cowley County Community College
Quick answers to the questions most students and parents ask. Every answer below is calculated from verified government data about Cowley County Community College.
Is Cowley County Community College hard to get into?
Cowley County Community College has open or near-open admissions. Most qualified applicants are accepted.
What is the acceptance rate at Cowley County Community College?
Cowley County Community College has an acceptance rate of 0%, according to College Scorecard 2023-24 admissions data.
How much does Cowley County Community College cost?
The average net price after aid at Cowley County Community College is $7,175 per year, this is what students typically pay after grants and scholarships are applied. Net price data: College Scorecard 2023-24.
Is Cowley County Community College worth it?
Strong return on investment. Graduates earn a median of $37,723 ten years after entering, against an average net price of $7,175 per year. That's roughly 5.3x earnings-to-cost. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
What is Cowley County Community College known for?
Cowley County Community College is best known for its programs in Liberal Arts, Practical Nursing, Nuclear and Industrial Radiologic Technologies/Technicians. These are the most popular fields by completed degrees, per IPEDS 2023-24 completion data.
What do Cowley County Community College graduates earn?
Median earnings 10 years after entering Cowley County Community College are $37,723, based on College Scorecard 2023-24 federal earnings data for Title IV recipients.
Is Cowley County Community College accredited?
Yes. Cowley County Community College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.
How many students attend Cowley County Community College?
Cowley County Community College enrolls 1,543 students, per IPEDS 2023-24 fall enrollment data.
What is the graduation rate at Cowley County Community College?
Cowley County Community College graduates 23% of full-time students within six years, per IPEDS 2023-24 completion data.
Is Cowley County Community College a public or private college?
Cowley County Community College is a Public institution.
Where is Cowley County Community College located?
Cowley County Community College is located in Arkansas City, Kansas.
What programs does Cowley County Community College offer?
Cowley County Community College offers 25 distinct programs. The most popular include Liberal Arts, Practical Nursing, Nuclear and Industrial Radiologic Technologies/Technicians.
What is the student-to-faculty ratio at Cowley County Community College?
The student-to-faculty ratio at Cowley County Community College is 16:1, per IPEDS 2023-24 data.
Related Colleges in Kansas
Other colleges in Kansas share the same applicant pool, regional economy, and academic landscape. Comparing nearby options puts admissions, costs, and outcomes in context, useful when weighing your fit against local alternatives.
Practical Nursing
Health Aides/Attendants/Orderlies
Vehicle Maintenance
Related Guides
Free, data-backed guides to help you decide, built on the same federal data as this profile.
H
How to Build Your College List Pillar
The full process of narrowing from 3,839 US colleges to a shortlist of ~10. Cost, location, size, selectivity, and fit factors that actually predict whether you'll thrive.
What actually makes a college work for first-generation students, the support and aid signals that predict success, and how to find the schools that deliver them using federal data.
How to find the colleges that deliver the strongest return on a STEM degree by weighing earnings outcomes against net cost, rather than chasing the most selective name.
Original data analyses built on the same federal data as this profile. Rankings, outliers, and patterns, no opinions.
American Colleges by the Numbers
One federal dataset, 3,839 colleges. The median school costs $16,371 a year, admits 78% of applicants, and enrolls 1,259 students. The shape of US higher ed.
Higher education data
Net price
College enrollment
Acceptance rate
College ownership
Do Selective Schools Actually Graduate More Students?
Across 1,645 four-year colleges, graduation rates climb steadily with selectivity, from 54% at open-admission schools to 93% at the most exclusive. The gap is real.
Graduation rate
Acceptance rate
Selectivity
Completion
College outcomes
For-Profit Colleges Charge the Most and Pay the Least
For-profit colleges post the highest median net price of any sector and the lowest graduate earnings. They cost more than private nonprofits and pay less than publics.
For-profit colleges
Net price
Earnings
College ROI
College ownership
Continue Exploring
Browse our full directory: every college, major, program, and career we track, all built from verified government data.
