Private for-profit · Community college
Chester Career College
CHESTER, Virginia · Large suburb
- 0%
- Transfer rate
- $24,259
- Avg net price
- 63%
- Grad / completion
- $32,650
- Median earnings
Chester Career College is a private for-profit certificate-granting institution in CHESTER, Virginia (large suburb setting), enrolling 79 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.
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
- 5 miles
- Nearest airport
- 11 miles to Richmond (RIC) · major hub
How Chester Career College compares
Higher than 53% · #27 of 65 in Virginia
Higher than 64%
Higher than 41% · #38 of 62 in Virginia
Cheaper than 20% · #52 cheapest of 61 in Virginia
Lower than 7%
Lower than 56%
Larger than 22%
Percentiles compare Chester Career 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 race / ethnicity
- White24%
- Black63%
- Hispanic10%
- Other or multiracial2.5%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 79
- Student–faculty ratio
- 15 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 54%
- First-generation students
- 45%
- Students over 25
- 54%
- Median family income
- $14,342
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
- $24,259
Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.
Outcomes
- Graduated
- 63%
- First-year retention
- 80%
- Transferred to another college
- 0%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $27,575
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $32,650
- Median debt at graduation
- $19,879
- Students with federal loans
- 50%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 21%
Campus life & athletics
- On-campus housing
- No
- Application fee
- $25
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%.
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.
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.
Is it worth it?
A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.
- Median earnings (10 years)
- $32,650
- Typical debt at graduation
- $19,879
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 61%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 38%
Typical debt would take roughly 6.1 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.
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.
Men out-earn women by $3,569 (11%) 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
- 90°F
- Winter low
- 31°F
- Annual rain
- 50.1″
- Annual snow
- 3.5″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Hopewell, VA US station (6.3 mi from campus).
What Chester Career College graduates study — and earn
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 Chester Career College
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Chester Career College side by side →
The Esthetic Institute
Vienna, Virginia · Large suburb · 11 mi to Washington
- Students
- 66
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- —
Paul Mitchell the School-NYC
Staten Island, New York · Large city · 11 mi to New York
- Students
- 96
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $32k
Stautzenberger College-Brecksville
Brecksville, Ohio · Large suburb · 15 mi to Cleveland
- Students
- 62
- Tuition
- $17k
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $34k
Ross Medical Education Center-Dayton
Fairborn, Ohio · Large suburb · 10 mi to Dayton
- Students
- 84
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $33k
Ross Medical Education Center-Johnson City
Johnson City, Tennessee · Small city · 54 mi to Asheville
- Students
- 87
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $33k
Ross Medical Education Center-Kokomo
Kokomo, Indiana · Small city · 47 mi to Indianapolis
- Students
- 75
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 3%
- Earnings
- $33k
Colleges near Chester Career College
Brightpoint Community College
Chester, VA · Public · Certificate · 5,792 students
Southside College of Health Sciences
Colonial Heights, VA · Private nonprofit · Associate · 151 students
Jazz Barber and Hairstyling Academy
Petersburg, VA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 46 students
Virginia State University
Petersburg, VA · Public · Bachelor's · 5,074 students
Another Level Barbering and Cosmetology School
Petersburg, VA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 70 students
Richard Bland College
South Prince George, VA · Public · Associate · 894 students
Empire Beauty School-Midlothian
Midlothian, VA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 125 students
Galen Health Institutes-Richmond
Richmond, VA · Private for-profit · Associate · 454 students
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.