A community college is an educational institution that provides tertiary education and continuing education supplemental to traditional four-year universities and colleges. In the United States, community colleges are primarily two-year public institutions of higher education. Many community colleges also offer remedial education, General Educational Development tests, high school degrees, technical degrees and certificates, and a limited number of four-year degrees. As of 2023, there were 932 public community colleges in the United States.
Community college can be a more affordable and less time-consuming way for students to earn a degree. Additionally, attending community college can be an easy way to gain entry to four year institutions. Some students may choose to attend a two year college to save money before transferring to a four year college. For some four year schools, they provide easier enrollment to students who have already studied in a community college.
In 2021, about 4.5 million students were enrolled in public 2-year postsecondary institutions across the U.S., a figure which is forecasted to increase to over 5 million enrolled students by 2031. In that same year, the most popular field of study for community college graduates was liberal arts and sciences, general studies, and humanities. About 400,447 associate degrees awarded at community colleges were in this field of study, and it made up one third of all attained degrees.
Community colleges received attention in 2015 after President Barack Obama proposed to make community college tuition free to many residents of the U.S. However, as of 2023, this initiative has not come to pass. For many individuals, community colleges offer the only opportunity for a college education, as tuition rates of public community colleges are significantly lower than for-profit colleges. In 2022, at private for-profit 2-year institutions, tuition costs totaled 15,826 U.S. dollars on average, while in public 2-year institution the tuition costs were estimated to be 3,564 U.S. dollars on average. This is also significantly lower than the cost of four year institutions, making community colleges a more feasible option for many students.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.