Public · Community college

Brightpoint Community College

Chester, Virginia · Large suburb

18%
Transfer rate: $5,490
Avg net price: 38%
Grad / completion: $41,223
Median earnings

Brightpoint Community College is a public certificate-granting institution in Chester, Virginia (large suburb setting), enrolling 5,792 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicMidsize · 5,792 undergradsLarge suburbCold wintersNear the coast

About Chester, Virginia

Chester is a census-designated place in Chesterfield County, Virginia, United States. Chester's original "downtown" was a stop which was an intersection of the Richmond and Petersburg Railroad, running north to south, and the Clover Hill Railroad, which became the Brighthope Railway, then the Farmville and Powhatan Railroad. (Wikipedia)

Setting: Large suburb
Highest degree offered: Associate
Nearest big city: 14 miles to Richmond, VA
To the ocean: 7 miles
Nearest airport: 12 miles to Richmond (RIC) · major hub

How Brightpoint Community College compares

Graduation rate38%

Higher than 24% · #53 of 65 in Virginia

First-year retention68%

Higher than 40%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$41,223

Higher than 73% · #18 of 62 in Virginia

Average net price$5,490

Cheaper than 89% · #12 cheapest of 61 in Virginia

Median debt at graduation$9,500

Lower than 57%

Student–faculty ratio23 : 1

Lower than 18%

Undergraduate enrollment5,792

Larger than 93%

Percentiles compare Brightpoint Community College 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 Virginia.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

Women3,67063%
Men2,12237%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

White46%
Black25%
Hispanic16%
Asian3.4%
Other or multiracial9.7%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment: 5,792
Student–faculty ratio: 23 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 23%
First-generation students: 42%
Students over 25: 22%
Median family income: $25,355
Avg faculty salary (academic year): $76,689
Endowment: $8,327,353

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

Where students come from

Home state of the 1,361 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

From Virginia99%
Other U.S. states0.7%

Most first-years stay in state — Brightpoint Community College draws overwhelmingly from Virginia.

Out-of-state students usually pay a higher tuition rate at public schools — check the cost card above for your bracket. Source: IPEDS residence & migration, fall 2023 entering class.

Cost

In-state tuition: $5,082
Out-of-state tuition: $11,520
Room & board: —
Books & supplies: $1,470
Total cost of attendance: $12,196
Average net price: $5,490

Outcomes

Graduated: 38%
First-year retention: 68%
Transferred to another college: 18%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $35,568
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $41,223
Median debt at graduation: $9,500
Students with federal loans: 3%
Paying down their loans (1 year in): 28%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students

38%

Low-income (Pell)

22%

First-generation

21%

When these bars run close together, students from every background tend to finish at similar rates — a sign the school supports the ~30% who are first-gen or low-income.

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing: No
Application fee: Free

Campus safety

Safety grade: A
Reported offenses per 1,000 students: 0.0 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024): 0
Property offenses (2022–2024): 0

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

$4,150

$30–48k

$4,803

$48–75k

$6,376

$75–110k

$8,764

$110k+

$11,669

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.

of first-years get a grant from the school

$2,211

average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 8% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $2,211. 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 742 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): $41,223
Typical debt at graduation: $9,500
Debt vs. one year's pay: 23%
Out-earn a HS grad: 49%

Typical debt would take roughly 2.3 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Solid value

A reasonable return: earnings comfortably clear the debt over a few years for most students who finish.

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

$39,421

Men

$45,015

Men out-earn women by $5,594 (14%) 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: 89°F
Winter low: 28°F
Annual rain: 47″
Annual snow: 3.5″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Petersburg, VA US station (7.5 mi from campus).

What Brightpoint Community College graduates study — and earn

Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesCert.

190 grads$25k 1 yr$43k 5 yr$9k debt

190$25,451$43,480$8,750 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesAssoc.

138 grads$25k 1 yr$43k 5 yr$9k debt

138$25,240$43,192$9,359 Electrical/Electronic Engineering Technologies/TechniciansCert.

122 grads$39k 1 yr— 5 yr$9k debt

122$39,204—$9,000 Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, GeneralAssoc.

115 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr$12k debt

115——$11,500 Business Administration, Management and OperationsAssoc.

91 grads$36k 1 yr$48k 5 yr$9k debt

91$35,785$48,299$9,250 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical NursingAssoc.

89 grads$69k 1 yr$75k 5 yr$20k debt

89$68,587$75,019$20,069 Precision Metal WorkingCert.

51 grads$39k 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

51$39,273——Psychology, GeneralAssoc.

48 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

48———Visual and Performing Arts, OtherAssoc.

45 grads$21k 1 yr— 5 yr$5k debt

45$20,781—$5,000 Human Development, Family Studies, and Related ServicesCert.

42 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

42———Computer ScienceAssoc.

41 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

41———Computer and Information Sciences, GeneralAssoc.

39 grads$41k 1 yr— 5 yr$8k debt

39$40,984—$8,250

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 Brightpoint Community College

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Brightpoint Community College side by side →

Germanna Community College

Public

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Students: 5,508
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 12%
Earnings: $40k

J Sargeant Reynolds Community College

Public

Richmond, Virginia · Large suburb · 7 mi to Richmond

Students: 5,586
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 15%
Earnings: $40k

Virginia Western Community College

Public

Roanoke, Virginia · Small city · 2 mi to Roanoke

Students: 3,898
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 14%
Earnings: $39k

Laurel Ridge Community College

Public

Middletown, Virginia · Fringe rural · 67 mi to Washington

Students: 3,195
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 15%
Earnings: $41k

Piedmont Virginia Community College

Public

Charlottesville, Virginia · Midsize suburb · 66 mi to Richmond

Students: 3,045
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 12%
Earnings: $41k

Virginia Peninsula Community College

Public

Hampton, Virginia · Large suburb · 16 mi to Norfolk

Students: 3,941
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 16%
Earnings: $38k

Colleges near Brightpoint Community College

Chester Career College

CHESTER, VA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 79 students

2 mi

Southside College of Health Sciences

Colonial Heights, VA · Private nonprofit · Associate · 151 students

5 mi

Virginia State University

Petersburg, VA · Public · Bachelor's · 5,074 students

8 mi

Jazz Barber and Hairstyling Academy

Petersburg, VA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 46 students

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Another Level Barbering and Cosmetology School

Petersburg, VA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 70 students

8 mi

Empire Beauty School-Midlothian

Midlothian, VA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 125 students

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Galen Health Institutes-Richmond

Richmond, VA · Private for-profit · Associate · 454 students

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Richard Bland College

South Prince George, VA · Public · Associate · 894 students

13 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.