Public · COLLEGE PAYOFF

William Rainey Harper College

Palatine, IL · 16 reportable field-and-credential outcomes

MODELED SCENARIO · Negative payoff

−$139,858 over 10 years

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

At these assumptions, the estimated earnings premium does not recover the modeled economic investment within ten years.

26.2 yrsModeled economic break-even
−62%Modeled 10-year ROI
$53,657Observed earnings · year 5
Economic ROI includes direct price and earnings forgone during study · $45,000 comparison earnings · values held flat · see the formula
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
−$139,858at year 10
Net gainInvestment not yet recovered
NET GAIN$0UNRECOVERED
−$226,4280
2
4
6
8
−$139,85810
Years after graduationBreak-even: 26.2 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$3,894
Sticker price
Published out-of-state tuition$11,874
Sticker price
Average net price$11,607
Title IV student average
Cost of attendance$19,288
Tuition + living budget
PRICE SOURCECollege reported · annual amount · federal dataset
OBSERVED FEDERAL MEASURES

Cost, completion and earnings context

$11,607Average net price / year
$19,288Cost of attendance
$53,657Median earnings · year 5 after completion
47.6%Completion rate
Not availableAdmission rate
9,313Student size
NATIONAL CONTEXT

How this college compares

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

69thEarnings percentile
34thCompletion percentile
EARNINGS PATH

Reported earnings over time

$40,524Year 1
$56,704Year 4
$53,657Year 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.

1Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions · Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma$87,2672Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing · Associate's Degree$82,4453Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions · Associate's Degree$80,9124Business Administration, Management and Operations · Associate's Degree$78,2845Engineering, General · Associate's Degree$75,9706Business Operations Support and Assistant Services · Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma$70,9537Dental Support Services and Allied Professions · Associate's Degree$69,7018Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants · Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma$69,119

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

BUILD A REAL SHORTLIST

Comparable colleges in IL

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

Charleston, IL

Eastern Illinois University

Annual net price
$12,786
Observed earnings · year 5
$52,419
Modeled 10-year ROI
-68%
Open college profile →
University Park, IL

Governors State University

Annual net price
$12,329
Observed earnings · year 5
$55,584
Modeled 10-year ROI
-54%
Open college profile →
Macomb, IL

Western Illinois University

Annual net price
$12,937
Observed earnings · year 5
$55,192
Modeled 10-year ROI
-56%
Open college profile →
Carbondale, IL

Southern Illinois University-Carbondale

Annual net price
$13,297
Observed earnings · year 5
$55,667
Modeled 10-year ROI
-54%
Open college profile →
ALL REPORTABLE PROGRAM CATEGORIES

Explore exact field-and-credential outcomes

Federal fieldCredentialEarnings, year 4Federal debt
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment ProfessionsUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$87,267$11,159
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical NursingAssociate's Degree$82,445$15,000
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment ProfessionsAssociate's Degree$80,912$16,525
Business Administration, Management and OperationsAssociate's Degree$78,284Not available
Engineering, GeneralAssociate's Degree$75,970Not available
Business Operations Support and Assistant ServicesUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$70,953Not available
Dental Support Services and Allied ProfessionsAssociate's Degree$69,701Not available
Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing AssistantsUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$69,119$8,750
Allied Health and Medical Assisting ServicesUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$64,750$9,834
Legal Support ServicesUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$62,081Not available
Biological and Physical SciencesAssociate's Degree$54,379$8,250
Criminal Justice and CorrectionsAssociate's Degree$50,553Not available
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesAssociate's Degree$50,088$7,500
Health and Medical Administrative ServicesUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$47,479$10,687
Health and Medical Administrative ServicesAssociate's Degree$46,359Not available
Accounting and Related ServicesUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma$45,358Not available

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.