Public · COLLEGE PAYOFF

Berkeley City College

Berkeley, CA · 1 reportable field-and-credential outcomes

10-year estimate · Negative payoff

−$152,104 over 10 years

Modeled from observed year-5 institution earnings and the institution-wide average net price over four years.

With these assumptions, the added earnings do not recover the cost within ten years.

33.7 yrsModeled economic break-even
−70%Modeled 10-year ROI
$51,428Observed earnings · year 5
Not reachedMaximum annual price for positive 10-year payoff
Includes direct price and earnings forgone while studying. Assumes $45,000 in alternative annual earnings and no wage growth. How we calculate it
ECONOMIC INVESTMENT → PAYBACK

Estimated payoff over ten years.

The scenario counts direct price and earnings forgone upfront, then applies the reported annual earnings premium.

10-YEAR PAYOFF CURVECumulative economic payoff after graduation
−$152,104at year 10
Net gainInvestment not yet recovered
NET GAIN$0UNRECOVERED
−$216,3840
2
4
6
8
−$152,10410
Years after graduationBreak-even: 33.7 years
FEDERAL COST DATA

Four ways to read college price.

Annual college-wide figures from the current College Scorecard release. Average net price covers full-time, first-time undergraduates receiving federal aid; public-college figures use in-state students. Program tuition and individual aid offers may differ.

Published in-state tuition$1,258
Sticker price
Published out-of-state tuition$9,898
Sticker price
Average net price$9,096
Title IV student average
Cost of attendance$18,845
Tuition + living budget
PRICE SOURCECollege reported · annual amount · federal dataset
COLLEGE AT A GLANCE

Institution details

Current federal characteristics describing the college—not the outcomes of a specific program.

Accreditor
Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges
Main award level
Associate degrees
Campus setting
City
Admissions
Open admission
Delivery
Campus or mixed delivery
Federal designation
No special designation reported
Sources: College Scorecard June 2026 release and IPEDS 2024 institutional characteristics.
OBSERVED FEDERAL MEASURES

Cost, debt, completion and earnings context

$9,096Average net price / year
$18,845Cost of attendance
Not availableMedian federal student debt · completer borrowers
Not availablePublished 10-year payment estimate
$51,428Median earnings · year 5 after completion
36.4%Completion rate
Not availableAdmission rate
4,456Student size

Institution debt covers federal student-loan borrowers who completed. Parent PLUS and private loans are excluded; missing and privacy-suppressed values remain unavailable.

PRICE BY FAMILY INCOME

Average net price is not one price

Federal averages for aided students in each family-income band. Your aid offer can differ.

$0–30k$7,979
$30–48k$7,182
$48–75k$12,123
$75–110k$13,213
$110k+Not available
LONGER-TERM CONTEXT

What happens beyond the first earnings measure

Year 5$51,428
Year 6$35,404
Year 10$41,217
Full-time retention
62.8%
Part-time retention
36.0%
Completion within 200% of normal time
47.5%

Earnings timepoints may use different historical cohorts and should not be read as one group’s guaranteed salary growth.

NATIONAL CONTEXT

How this college compares

Percentiles compare this institution with currently operating colleges that report the same federal measure.

65thEarnings percentile
19thCompletion percentile
WHAT STANDS OUT

A faster read on this college

These summaries use only reportable field-and-credential records at this institution. They do not fill privacy-suppressed outcomes.

$62,672Median year-4 earnings across reportable program categories
Not availableMedian federal debt across categories that report debt
100%Of earnings-reporting categories above their same-field national benchmark
EARNINGS PATH

Reported earnings over time

Not availableYear 1
$53,830Year 4
$51,428Year 5

Separate federal cohorts may underlie different measurement years.

PROGRAM PAYOFF SPREAD

The college average is not the whole story.

Observed earnings vary substantially by field and credential at the same institution.

1Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities · Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma$62,672

Observed year-4 earnings · compare like fields and credentials before deciding

Strongest relative outcomes

Programs that stand out against the same-degree benchmark

This view rewards performance relative to the same field and credential—not simply majors that pay more everywhere.

1Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma · $62,672 reported+40%vs same-degree national medianNot availablefederal debt
BUILD A REAL SHORTLIST

Comparable colleges in CA

Currently operating public institutions with the closest combination of annual net price and observed year-5 earnings. Similarity is descriptive—not a quality ranking.

Joshua Tree, CA

Copper Mountain Community College

Annual net price
$9,105
Observed earnings · year 5
$52,460
Modeled 10-year ROI
-66%
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Pittsburg, CA

Los Medanos College

Annual net price
$7,443
Observed earnings · year 5
$51,598
Modeled 10-year ROI
-69%
Open college profile →
Walnut, CA

Mt San Antonio College

Annual net price
$6,490
Observed earnings · year 5
$51,030
Modeled 10-year ROI
-71%
Open college profile →
Fresno, CA

Fresno City College

Annual net price
$8,069
Observed earnings · year 5
$49,314
Modeled 10-year ROI
-80%
Open college profile →
ALL REPORTABLE PROGRAM CATEGORIES

Explore exact field-and-credential outcomes

Federal fieldCredentialEarnings, year 4Federal debt2023–24 awards
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$62,672Not available384

Awards use first-major IPEDS completions aggregated to the same four-digit field and credential.

Earnings, price, completion and enrollment are observed federal measures. ROI, payoff and break-even are modeled scenarios built from those measures and fixed assumptions. College payoff is not the payoff of every degree at this school; use the program table for a more precise comparison.