Private for-profit · Community college

Central Penn College

Summerdale, Pennsylvania · Large suburb

#1 most selective in Pennsylvania
0%
Transfer rate
$18,953
Avg net price
51%
Grad / completion
$45,370
Median earnings

Central Penn College is a private for-profit certificate-granting institution in Summerdale, Pennsylvania (large suburb setting), enrolling 662 undergraduates.

Private for-profitSmall · 662 undergradsLarge suburbVery selective · 18% admitUSCAACold winters

About Summerdale, Pennsylvania

Summerdale is an unincorporated community located in East Pennsboro Township, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. Central Pennsylvania College and the Capital Area Intermediate Unit are located in Summerdale. It is part of the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large suburb
Highest degree offered
Graduate
To the ocean
68 miles
Nearest airport
12 miles to Harrisburg (MDT)

How Central Penn College compares

Selectivity18.5%

More selective than 98% · #1 most selective of 40 in Pennsylvania

Graduation rate51%

Higher than 38% · #114 of 151 in Pennsylvania

First-year retention65%

Higher than 33%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$45,370

Higher than 84% · #47 of 137 in Pennsylvania

Average net price$18,953

Cheaper than 36% · #83 cheapest of 152 in Pennsylvania

Median debt at graduation$23,194

Lower than 3%

Student–faculty ratio7 : 1

Lower than 92%

Undergraduate enrollment662

Larger than 67%

Percentiles compare Central Penn 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

Undergraduate vs. graduate

675students
  • Undergraduate66298%
  • Graduate132%

Undergraduates by gender

662undergrads
  • Women42063%
  • Men24237%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White55%
  • Black18%
  • Hispanic9.5%
  • Asian3.0%
  • Other or multiracial14%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
662
Graduate enrollment
13
Student–faculty ratio
7 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
49%
First-generation students
51%
Students over 25
46%
Median family income
$28,098
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$48,420

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

Cost

In-state tuition
$19,854
Room & board
$7,581
Books & supplies
$2,000
Total cost of attendance
$27,116
Average net price
$18,953

Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.

Admissions

Admission rate
18.5%
Test scores
Not considered
SAT range (25th–75th %)
SAT average
SAT reading
SAT math
ACT composite

Outcomes

Graduated (within 6 years)
51%
Graduated on time (4 years)
39%
First-year retention
65%
Transferred to another college
0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$40,798
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$45,370
Median debt at graduation
$23,194
Students with federal loans
66%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
35%

About 12% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
39%
Low-income (Pell)
30%
First-generation
36%

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
Yes
Dorm capacity
321
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
48%
Housing charge (year)
$5,480
Meal plan (year)
$2,100
Application fee
Free
Athletics
USCAA
Varsity athletes
107 (81 men · 26 women)

Housing and fees: IPEDS 2023–24. Athletics rosters: Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25. Dorm capacity can include graduate and family housing, so the share of undergrads can top 100%.

Varsity sports (5)

Soccer37
Baseball34
Basketball25
Cross Country8
Other Sports3

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

Campus safety

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

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (684 students). Counts reflect reports, not convictions — schools with strong reporting cultures often show more, so a higher count doesn't simply mean a more dangerous campus.

Reported offenses in an average year

The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.

0.3reported offenses a year
0.3 violent a year0 property a year

By offense type, per year

Fondling
0.3

Averages, not a forecast — a single year can run well above or below this. Bars are scaled against this campus's most-reported offense, so they compare types here rather than against other schools.

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
$15,859
$30–48k
$19,164
$48–75k
$17,011
$75–110k
$18,973
$110k+
$23,656

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.

Four-year (or more) true cost

Net price for your family's income, projected across the time it actually takes students here to graduate.

Est. total to a degree
$74,159

$17,011/year × about 4.4 years — most students here don't finish in exactly four, and each extra term adds cost. A planning estimate from net-price and graduation-timing data, not a bill.

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.

81%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$4,876
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 81% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $4,876. 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 57 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)
$45,370
Typical debt at graduation
$23,194
Debt vs. one year's pay
51%
Out-earn a HS grad
58%

Typical debt would take roughly 5.1 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
$42,347
Men
$51,435

Men out-earn women by $9,088 (21%) 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
85°F
Winter low
22°F
Annual rain
45.2″
Annual snow
23.9″

Average temperature

HighLow
10°50°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.44.8JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Harrisburg 1 NE, PA US station (3.7 mi from campus).

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 Central Penn College

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

Colleges near Central Penn College

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.