Public · Community college

Ben Franklin Career Center

Dunbar, West Virginia · Midsize suburb

0%
Transfer rate: $3,382
Avg net price: 86%
Grad / completion: $37,962
Median earnings

Ben Franklin Career Center is a public certificate-granting institution in Dunbar, West Virginia (midsize suburb setting), enrolling 78 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicSmall · 78 undergradsMidsize suburbCold wintersSnowy

About Dunbar, West Virginia

Dunbar is a city in Kanawha County, West Virginia, United States, situated along the Kanawha River. Dunbar was incorporated on April 19, 1921, by an Act of the West Virginia Legislature. (Wikipedia)

Setting: Midsize suburb
Highest degree offered: Certificate
Nearest big city: 7 miles to Charleston, WV
To Great Lakes shore: 212 miles
Nearest airport: 9 miles to Yeager (CRW)

How Ben Franklin Career Center compares

Graduation rate86%

Higher than 86% · #11 of 42 in West Virginia

First-year retention93%

Higher than 86%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$37,962

Higher than 60% · #13 of 40 in West Virginia

Average net price$3,382

Cheaper than 95% · #9 cheapest of 42 in West Virginia

Student–faculty ratio12 : 1

Lower than 73%

Undergraduate enrollment78

Larger than 22%

Percentiles compare Ben Franklin Career Center with the nation's 3,519 two-year and certificate schools, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count two-year and certificate schools in West Virginia.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

Women1215%
Men6685%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

White83%
Black10%
Other or multiracial6.4%

Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment: 78
Student–faculty ratio: 12 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 46%
First-generation students: 52%
Students over 25: 52%
Median family income: $10,926

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Cost

In-state tuition: —
Room & board: —
Total cost of attendance: —
Average net price: $3,382

Outcomes

Graduated: 86%
First-year retention: 93%
Transferred to another college: 0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $28,611
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $37,962
Median debt at graduation: —
Students with federal loans: 0%

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing: No
Application fee: $100

What you'll actually pay, by family income

Average net price (total cost minus grants and scholarships) paid by aided students in each family-income band.

< $30k

$3,702

$30–48k

$1,956

$48–75k

$2,568

$75–110k

—

$110k+

—

College Scorecard / IPEDS, most recent year. Family income is total household income; net price covers tuition, fees, room, board and supplies after grant aid, for students receiving federal aid.

Does the school pay you to attend?

Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.

25%

of first-years get a grant from the school

$831

average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 25% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $831. Most of what lowers the price here is federal or state money, not the school's own funds.

Blends need-based and merit aid — IPEDS doesn't split the two, so a high number can mean generous merit scholarships, deep need-based aid, or both. Figures cover 36 full-time first-year undergraduates, 2022–23. Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid.

Is it worth it?

A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.

Median earnings (10 years): $37,962
Typical debt at graduation: —
Debt vs. one year's pay: —
Out-earn a HS grad: 32%

Weigh it value

The payoff is less clear-cut here — weigh the debt against the earnings and your intended field before borrowing heavily.

Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.

The pay gap here

Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.

Women

$29,605

Men

$41,557

Men out-earn women by $11,952 (40%) a decade out.

Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.

Campus climate

Summer high: 86°F
Winter low: 23°F
Annual rain: 48.2″
Annual snow: 31.5″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Charleston Wfo, WV US station (4.2 mi from campus).

What Ben Franklin Career Center graduates study — and earn

Electrical/Electronics Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians

15 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

15———Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions

10 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

10———Ground Transportation

9 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

9———Precision Metal Working

7 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

7———Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR)

4 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

4———Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians

2 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

2———

Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.

Colleges similar to Ben Franklin Career Center

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Ben Franklin Career Center side by side →

Cabell County Career Technology Center

Public

Huntington, West Virginia · Midsize suburb · 40 mi to Charleston

Students: 51
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $34k

Monongalia County Technical Education Center

Public

Morgantown, West Virginia · Small city · 57 mi to Pittsburgh

Students: 43
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $40k

Mercer County Technical Education Center

Public

Princeton, West Virginia · Distant town · 64 mi to Roanoke

Students: 120
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $34k

Fayette Institute of Technology

Public

Oak Hill, West Virginia · Small suburb · 36 mi to Charleston

Students: 32
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $42k

Fred W Eberle Technical Center

Public

Buckhannon, West Virginia · Remote town · 88 mi to Charleston

Students: 109
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $43k

Wood County Technical Center-Practical Nursing

Public

Parkersburg, West Virginia · Small city · 62 mi to Charleston

Students: 31
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $41k

Colleges near Ben Franklin Career Center

West Virginia State University

Institute, WV · Public · Bachelor's · 1,321 students

1 mi

BridgeValley Community & Technical College

South Charleston, WV · Public · Associate · 1,854 students

3 mi

West Virginia Junior College-Charleston

Cross Lanes, WV · Private for-profit · Associate · 394 students

4 mi

University of Charleston

Charleston, WV · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 2,259 students

8 mi

Mountain State School of Massage

Charleston, WV · Private for-profit · Certificate · 32 students

10 mi

Charleston School of Beauty Culture

Charleston, WV · Private for-profit · Certificate · 46 students

10 mi

Ross Medical Education Center-Charleston

Charleston, WV · Private for-profit · Certificate · 65 students

11 mi

Strayer University-West Virginia

Scott Depot, WV · Private for-profit · Bachelor's · 234 students

11 mi

Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.