Public · Community college

Butler County Community College

Butler, Pennsylvania · Fringe town

#5 best value in Pennsylvania

25%
Transfer rate: $6,233
Avg net price: 37%
Grad / completion: $38,891
Median earnings

Butler County Community College is a public associate-granting institution in Butler, Pennsylvania (fringe town setting), enrolling 1,789 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicSmall · 1,789 undergradsFringe townNJCAA Division IIICold wintersSnowy

About Butler, Pennsylvania

Butler is a city in Butler County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. Butler was named for Maj. Gen. Richard Butler, who fell at the Battle of the Wabash, also known as St. Clair's Defeat, in western Ohio in 1791. The Butler County Symphony Orchestra, is Butler County's largest performing arts non-profit. Founded in 1948 as the Butler Orchestral Association, the BCSO has been in continuous operations since its first concert in April 1950. (Wikipedia)

Setting: Fringe town
Highest degree offered: Associate
Nearest big city: 27 miles to Pittsburgh, PA
To Great Lakes shore: 86 miles
Nearest airport: 29 miles to Pittsburgh (PIT) · major hub

How Butler County Community College compares

Graduation rate37%

Higher than 22% · #125 of 151 in Pennsylvania

First-year retention65%

Higher than 33%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$38,891

Higher than 65% · #67 of 137 in Pennsylvania

Average net price$6,233

Cheaper than 85% · #5 cheapest of 152 in Pennsylvania

Median debt at graduation$10,020

Lower than 46%

Student–faculty ratio12 : 1

Lower than 73%

Undergraduate enrollment1,789

Larger than 80%

Percentiles compare Butler County 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 Pennsylvania.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

Women1,10162%
Men68838%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

White87%
Black2.6%
Hispanic2.2%
Asian1.4%
Other or multiracial6.8%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment: 1,789
Student–faculty ratio: 12 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 30%
First-generation students: 43%
Students over 25: 22%
Median family income: $27,304
Avg faculty salary (academic year): $68,895
Endowment: $7,183,496

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 561 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

From Pennsylvania99%
Other U.S. states0.5%

Most first-years stay in state — Butler County Community College draws overwhelmingly from Pennsylvania.

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: $5,910
Out-of-state tuition: $12,000
Room & board: —
Books & supplies: $1,400
Total cost of attendance: $12,340
Average net price: $6,233

Outcomes

Graduated: 37%
First-year retention: 65%
Transferred to another college: 25%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $33,920
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $38,891
Median debt at graduation: $10,020
Students with federal loans: 17%
Paying down their loans (1 year in): 48%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students

37%

Low-income (Pell)

18%

First-generation

19%

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: $25
Athletics: NJCAA Division III
Varsity athletes: 34 (20 men · 14 women)

Varsity sports (3)

Volleyball13

Basketball12

Golf9

Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.

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

$4,083

$30–48k

$3,439

$48–75k

$6,865

$75–110k

$9,940

$110k+

$11,826

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

$1,886

average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 6% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,886. 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 408 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): $38,891
Typical debt at graduation: $10,020
Debt vs. one year's pay: 26%
Out-earn a HS grad: 46%

Typical debt would take roughly 2.6 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

$34,844

Men

$47,492

Men out-earn women by $12,648 (36%) 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: 82°F
Winter low: 17°F
Annual rain: 43.2″
Annual snow: 34.9″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Butler 2 SW, PA US station (0.9 mi from campus).

What Butler County Community College graduates study — and earn

Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical NursingAssoc.

76 grads$64k 1 yr— 5 yr$19k debt

76$63,946—$18,576 Business Administration, Management and OperationsAssoc.

66 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

66———Psychology, GeneralAssoc.

39 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

39———Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesAssoc.

37 grads$28k 1 yr— 5 yr$7k debt

37$28,138—$6,932 Criminal Justice and CorrectionsAssoc.

15 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

15———Health and Medical Administrative ServicesCert.

15 grads— 1 yr$41k 5 yr— debt

15—$40,926—Education, GeneralAssoc.

14 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

14———Computer/Information Technology Administration and ManagementAssoc.

13 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

13———Parks, Recreation, and Leisure StudiesAssoc.

12 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

12———Computer Engineering Technologies/TechniciansAssoc.

11 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

11———Entrepreneurial and Small Business OperationsCert.

11 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

11———Human Resources Management and ServicesAssoc.

9 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

9———

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 Butler County Community College

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

Westmoreland County Community College

Public

Youngwood, Pennsylvania · Large suburb · 27 mi to Pittsburgh

Students: 2,441
Tuition: $6k
Transfer: 18%
Earnings: $37k

Pennsylvania Highlands Community College

Public

Johnstown, Pennsylvania · Fringe rural · 62 mi to Pittsburgh

Students: 788
Tuition: $7k
Transfer: 17%
Earnings: $39k

Community College of Beaver County

Public

Monaca, Pennsylvania · Large suburb · 22 mi to Pittsburgh

Students: 1,247
Tuition: $8k
Transfer: 28%
Earnings: $45k

Luzerne County Community College

Public

Nanticoke, Pennsylvania · Large suburb · 23 mi to Scranton

Students: 3,317
Tuition: $7k
Transfer: 17%
Earnings: $40k

Reading Area Community College

Public

Reading, Pennsylvania · Small city · 28 mi to Lancaster

Students: 3,703
Tuition: $6k
Transfer: 13%
Earnings: $39k

Lehigh Carbon Community College

Public

Schnecksville, Pennsylvania · Fringe rural · 7 mi to Allentown

Students: 4,148
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 19%
Earnings: $42k

Colleges near Butler County Community College

Butler Beauty Academy

Butler, PA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 26 students

2 mi

Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania

Slippery Rock, PA · Public · Bachelor's · 6,788 students

18 mi

Citizens School of Nursing

Tarentum, PA · Private nonprofit · Certificate · 152 students

19 mi

La Roche University

Pittsburgh, PA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 751 students

19 mi

Butler Beauty Academy-Kittanning Beauty Academy

Kittanning, PA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 14 students

20 mi

Lenape Technical School Practical Nursing Program

Ford City, PA · Public · Certificate · 58 students

21 mi

Geneva College

Beaver Falls, PA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,096 students

22 mi

Empire Beauty School-North Hills

Pittsburgh, PA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 83 students

22 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.