Public Bachelor's Strong 74/100

Palm Beach State College

See admissions data, costs, student outcomes, and academic programs, all verified from official US government sources.

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Lake Worth, Florida

About Palm Beach State College

Thinking about Palm Beach State College, a college in Florida where more students graduate in Liberal Arts than anything else? The four things worth knowing are what it actually costs after aid, whether you would get in, whether students finish, and what they earn after they do.

Palm Beach State College is a public institution offering bachelor's degrees based in Lake Worth, Florida. It enrolls 21,956 students (a very large student body), according to IPEDS 2023-24 data. Every figure on this page is reported by the federal government, not supplied by the college, so it can be compared like for like against anywhere else you are looking.

Acceptance
—
Graduation
35.6%
Net Price
$9,182
Median Earnings (10yr)
$41,923
Enrollment
21,956
Student : Faculty
29:1

Accreditor Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges
Academic Calendar Semester

How It Measures Up

These four scores answer one question: compared with similar colleges, is this one worth the money? Each runs 0 to 100 and is judged only against its peer group (4-Year Open / Online), so a community college is never marked down for not being Harvard. Everything is computed from federal data. Nobody can pay to move a score, and a pillar with missing data is left unscored rather than guessed.

Strong
74/100
UCD Score · 4-Year Open / Online
Outcomes 59
Value 71
Affordability 59
Selectivity —

Admissions & Acceptance Rate

Palm Beach State College does not report an acceptance rate. Schools that do not publish one are usually open-admission, but confirm with the admissions office before you assume it.

Acceptance Rate
—
SAT Range (25th–75th)
—
Not reported
ACT Range (25th–75th)
—
Not reported

Cost & Financial Aid

Ignore the sticker price. What matters is the net price, which is what a typical family pays here after grants and scholarships come off. At $9,182 a year on average, it sits well below what public colleges charge nationally. At that level cost is rarely the reason to rule a college out. Figures are College Scorecard 2023-24.

The average hides a wide spread by household income, so it is worth estimating what a family at your income would actually pay before treating this as the price.

Average Net Price
$9,182
Per year, after typical aid
Receive Pell Grants
38%
Need-based federal aid
Receive Federal Loans
11%
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)
$3,050
Tuition & Fees (out-of-state)
$10,910
Room & Board (off-campus)
$12,825
Books & Supplies
$2,700
Other Expenses (off-campus)
$7,155
Total Cost of Attendance
$16,830

Application fee: $40 (one-time, due at submission)


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
    $8,131
  • $30,001 – $48,000
    $8,675
  • $48,001 – $75,000
    $10,862
  • $75,001 – $110,000
    $13,902
  • Over $110,000
    $12,013

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.

$1,409
10% percentile
$2,124
25% percentile
$7,081
Median percentile
$8,004
75% percentile
$17,175
90% 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 $5,500 ↓ $1,581
No Pell $4,500 ↓ $2,581
Dependent students $4,500 ↓ $2,581
Independent students $6,750 ↓ $331
Female students $5,250 ↓ $1,831
Male students $4,800 ↓ $2,281
Pell recipients: 17.6% (1,244 students)No Pell: 14.4% (1,018 students)Dependent students: 14.4% (1,018 students)Independent students: 21.6% (1,527 students)Female students: 16.8% (1,188 students)Male students: 15.3% (1,086 students)Overall Median$7,081
Worth knowing: Students who don't finish leave with a median debt of $4,086, less than completers ($7,081), but still a meaningful obligation without a degree in hand.

Graduation Rate & Retention

36% of students who start here finish within six years. Fewer than half finish in six years. Ask what support exists for students who fall behind. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.

Completion and earnings carry the most weight in this college's score, and how the UCD Score weighs each measure sets out exactly how they are combined.

6-Year Graduation Rate
36%
Of students who graduate within six years
First-Year Retention
—
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

Ten years after starting here, the median student earns $41,923 a year, close to the national median. Typical for most colleges, so what you study will matter more than where. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.

Median Earnings (10 yrs)
$41,923
Earning > $25K
67%
10 yrs after entry

Earnings Growth After Graduation

Median annual earnings 6, 8, and 10 years after students first enrolled.

$32,000$35,000$38,000$40,000$43,0006 yrs8 yrs10 yrs

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
$35,000

Median earnings for female grads ten years after first enrolling here.

Male graduates
$42,800

Median earnings for male grads ten years after first enrolling here.


By Family Income at Entry

Family income (lowest third)
$35,800

Earnings of grads from the bottom-third of family incomes at entry.

Family income (middle third)
$39,900

Earnings of grads from the middle-third of family incomes at entry.

Family income (highest third)
$45,200

Earnings of grads from the top-third of family incomes at entry.

The gender gap: Male graduates earn $7,800, about 18% 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 ↑ 22.8 pts across 6 years
44.4%1yr49.6%3yr59.9%5yr67.2%7yr
What this signals: Moderate. Only 67% of graduates are paying down principal seven years out.

Who Studies Here

Who you would actually be sitting next to: 21,956 students, a sprawling student community. Worth knowing: 49% are the first in their family to go to college, and 64% study part-time, so many are working alongside classes.

Total Enrolled
21,956
Part-Time
64%
First-Generation
49%

Race & Ethnicity Breakdown

Undergraduate student body composition reported to the US Department of Education.

GroupShareStudents
Hispanic 35.6% 7,821
Black 30.9% 6,773
White 21.9% 4,802
International 3.5% 760
Other 2.8% 610
Asian 2.2% 472
Hispanic: 35.6% (7,821 students)Black: 30.9% (6,773 students)White: 21.9% (4,802 students)International: 3.5% (760 students)Other: 2.8% (610 students)Asian: 2.2% (472 students)Total21,956

Student Life & Campus Culture

Where students live, learn, and connect at Palm Beach State College. The campus setting, housing profile, and signals that shape day-to-day life here.

Setting
Large Suburb Lake Worth, Florida
Housing
Commuter campus No on-campus housing
Adult Learners
29% of students are 25 or older
Athletics
NCAA athletic-conference member
Academic Calendar
Semester scheduling structure
Designation
Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI)

What You Can Study

After that comes the national picture for Health graduates, which shows what the field pays across every college rather than just this one.

Palm Beach State College offers an extensive catalog of programs: 56 distinct programs across 18 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.

1 Program
15 Programs
9 Programs
6 Programs
1 Program
  • Human $49K ($35K–$63K)
1 Program

Faculty & Resources

There are 29 students for every instructor here: high, so expect big lectures and to work harder for one-to-one time.

Student : Faculty
29:1
Students per instructional faculty member
Instruction / Student
$3,319
Annual instructional spending per enrolled student
Endowment
$23M
Modest endowment
Avg Faculty Salary
$61,842
9-month equivalent across all ranks

Faculty by Rank

310 instructional faculty across 4 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
Full Professors 58 19% $70,105
Associate Professors 37 12% $61,917
Assistant Professors 75 24% $60,960
Instructors 140 45% $58,871

Pros & Cons of Palm Beach State College

No college is right for everyone. Here is where Palm Beach State College is likely to suit you and where it may not, based on the same figures shown above.

Read against a single profile these cut both ways, which is why it helps to put two colleges side by side on the same measures rather than judging one in isolation.

PROS
  • Very affordable net price after aid
  • Low typical debt at graduation
  • First-gen-friendly student body
  • Flexible part-time enrollment options
CONS
  • Larger class sizes than typical
  • Low completion rate, many students don't graduate within six years
  • Earnings outcomes are on the lower side
  • No graduate programs offered at this institution
  • Mostly part-time student body, less full-time campus feel
Best for: Based on the data, Palm Beach State College is a fit for families focused on keeping net cost low; working adults or students needing part-time study options.

Frequently Asked Questions about Palm Beach State College

The questions families ask most about Palm Beach State College, answered straight from the federal data rather than from the college's own marketing.

How much does Palm Beach State College cost?
Budget around $9,182 a year. That is the net price, what families typically pay once grants and scholarships come off, not the sticker price. Your own figure depends on household income, so treat this as a midpoint rather than a quote. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
Is Palm Beach State College worth it?
On the numbers, yes: solid return on investment. Ten years in, the median graduate earns $41,923 a year against a net price of $9,182, about 4.6 dollars of earnings for every dollar of annual cost. That ratio ignores whether you finish and what you study, which matter just as much. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
What is Palm Beach State College known for?
Mostly Liberal Arts, Business Administration, Nursing. Those are the fields where it awards the most degrees, which is a better guide to where the teaching strength sits than any reputation ranking. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
What do Palm Beach State College graduates earn?
About $41,923 a year, measured ten years after students first enrolled. Half earn more and half earn less, and what you study moves that figure far more than where you study. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
Is Palm Beach State College accredited?
Yes. Palm Beach State College is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.
How many students attend Palm Beach State College?
21,956 students. Large, so expect big lectures and more independence in finding your own footing. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
What is the graduation rate at Palm Beach State College?
36% finish within six years. That means most students do not finish in six years. Ask the school directly what support exists for students who fall behind. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
Is Palm Beach State College a public or private college?
It is Public. Public, so in-state students usually pay materially less than everyone else.
Where is Palm Beach State College located?
Palm Beach State College is located in Lake Worth, Florida.
What programs does Palm Beach State College offer?
56 different programs, most commonly Liberal Arts, Business Administration, Nursing. If the subject you want is not among them, check the full list before applying rather than assuming it is offered.
What is the student-to-faculty ratio at Palm Beach State College?
29 students per instructor. On the high side, so expect big classes and to seek out contact time yourself. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.

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