Public · COLLEGE PAYOFF

Somerset Community College

Somerset, KY · 20 reportable field-and-credential outcomes

10-year estimate · Negative payoff

−$288,222 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.

Modeled economic break-even
−146%Modeled 10-year ROI
$35,937Observed 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
−$288,222at year 10
Net gainInvestment not yet recovered
NET GAIN$0UNRECOVERED
−$197,5920
2
4
6
8
−$288,22210
Years after graduationBreak-even: 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$4,728
Sticker price
Published out-of-state tuition$6,432
Sticker price
Average net price$4,398
Title IV student average
Cost of attendance$12,959
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
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges
Main award level
Certificates
Campus setting
Town
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

$4,398Average net price / year
$12,959Cost of attendance
$12,215Median federal student debt · completer borrowers
$129/moPublished 10-year payment estimate
$35,937Median earnings · year 5 after completion
43.1%Completion rate
Not availableAdmission rate
4,166Student 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$3,671
$30–48k$3,524
$48–75k$5,103
$75–110k$7,596
$110k+$9,860
LONGER-TERM CONTEXT

What happens beyond the first earnings measure

Year 5$35,937
Year 6$27,858
Year 10$30,787
Full-time retention
66.5%
Part-time retention
52.7%
Completion within 200% of normal time
43.2%

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.

31thEarnings percentile
28thCompletion 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.

$40,411Median year-4 earnings across reportable program categories
$11,832Median federal debt across categories that report debt
18%Of earnings-reporting categories above their same-field national benchmark
EARNINGS PATH

Reported earnings over time

$33,829Year 1
$43,252Year 4
$35,937Year 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.

1Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Associate's Degree$66,9182Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services · Associate's Degree$55,8913Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions · Associate's Degree$51,8594Computer and Information Sciences, General · Associate's Degree$47,9075Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other · Associate's Degree$43,5286Business Administration, Management and Operations · Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma$40,4117Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants · Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma$38,8858Health and Medical Administrative Services · Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma$37,827

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

BUILD A REAL SHORTLIST

Comparable colleges in KY

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

Maysville, KY

Maysville Community and Technical College

Annual net price
$4,605
Observed earnings · year 5
$36,196
Modeled 10-year ROI
-144%
Open college profile →
Cumberland, KY

Southeast Kentucky Community & Technical College

Annual net price
$3,731
Observed earnings · year 5
$36,488
Modeled 10-year ROI
-144%
Open college profile →
Paducah, KY

West Kentucky Community and Technical College

Annual net price
$5,353
Observed earnings · year 5
$38,202
Modeled 10-year ROI
-134%
Open college profile →
Hazard, KY

Hazard Community and Technical College

Annual net price
$2,955
Observed earnings · year 5
$33,950
Modeled 10-year ROI
-158%
Open college profile →
ALL REPORTABLE PROGRAM CATEGORIES

Explore exact field-and-credential outcomes

Federal fieldCredentialEarnings, year 4Federal debt2023–24 awards
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical NursingAssociate's Degree$66,918$15,842Not reported
Allied Health and Medical Assisting ServicesAssociate's Degree$55,891Not availableNot reported
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment ProfessionsAssociate's Degree$51,859$11,281Not reported
Computer and Information Sciences, GeneralAssociate's Degree$47,907$8,900Not reported
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, OtherAssociate's Degree$43,528$13,023Not reported
Business Administration, Management and OperationsUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$40,411$15,80552
Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing AssistantsUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$38,885$9,09644
Health and Medical Administrative ServicesUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$37,827$25,69390
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesAssociate's Degree$37,467$12,625Not reported
Health and Medical Administrative ServicesAssociate's Degree$34,743$33,302Not reported
Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming ServicesUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$23,441$11,83244
Computer and Information Sciences, GeneralUndergraduate Certificate or DiplomaNot available$9,00023
Human Development, Family Studies, and Related ServicesUndergraduate Certificate or DiplomaNot available$10,28746
Human Development, Family Studies, and Related ServicesAssociate's DegreeNot available$11,364Not reported
Criminal Justice and CorrectionsUndergraduate Certificate or DiplomaNot available$15,89912
Criminal Justice and CorrectionsAssociate's DegreeNot available$12,875Not reported
Electrical and Power Transmission InstallersUndergraduate Certificate or DiplomaNot available$9,50074
Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/TechniciansUndergraduate Certificate or DiplomaNot available$9,586106
Precision Metal WorkingUndergraduate Certificate or DiplomaNot available$8,43936
Business Administration, Management and OperationsAssociate's DegreeNot available$16,361Not reported

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.