Public · Community college

Chippewa Valley Technical College

Eau Claire, Wisconsin · Small city

#3 for grad earnings in Wisconsin

7%
Transfer rate: $12,285
Avg net price: 50%
Grad / completion: $46,297
Median earnings

Chippewa Valley Technical College is a public certificate-granting institution in Eau Claire, Wisconsin (small city setting), enrolling 4,272 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicMidsize · 4,272 undergradsSmall cityCold wintersSnowy

About Eau Claire, Wisconsin

Eau Claire is a city in Eau Claire and Chippewa counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The First Treaty of Prairie du Chien, signed in 1825, established the Chippewa River "half a day's march below the falls" as the boundary between the Sioux and Chippewa, and the "Clear Water River, a branch of the Chippewa" as the boundary between the Chippewa and Winnebago. Eau Claire has a modest but active theater community. (Wikipedia)

Setting: Small city
Highest degree offered: Associate
Nearest big city: 87 miles to Minneapolis, MN
To Great Lakes shore: 128 miles
Nearest airport: 5 miles to Chippewa Valley (EAU)

How Chippewa Valley Technical College compares

Graduation rate50%

Higher than 37% · #24 of 40 in Wisconsin

First-year retention72%

Higher than 48%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$46,297

Higher than 86% · #3 of 40 in Wisconsin

Average net price$12,285

Cheaper than 61% · #16 cheapest of 38 in Wisconsin

Median debt at graduation$11,432

Lower than 33%

Student–faculty ratio14 : 1

Lower than 62%

Undergraduate enrollment4,272

Larger than 90%

Percentiles compare Chippewa Valley Technical 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 Wisconsin.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

Women2,34155%
Men1,93145%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

White83%
Black1.6%
Hispanic4.8%
Asian4.7%
Other or multiracial6.0%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment: 4,272
Student–faculty ratio: 14 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 17%
First-generation students: 39%
Students over 25: 22%
Median family income: $33,827
Avg faculty salary (academic year): $75,132

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 976 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

From Wisconsin96%
Other U.S. states3.9%

Most first-years stay in state — Chippewa Valley Technical College draws overwhelmingly from Wisconsin.

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: $4,844
Out-of-state tuition: $7,087
Room & board: —
Books & supplies: $1,465
Total cost of attendance: $16,986
Average net price: $12,285

Outcomes

Graduated: 50%
First-year retention: 72%
Transferred to another college: 7%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $43,630
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $46,297
Median debt at graduation: $11,432
Students with federal loans: 17%
Paying down their loans (1 year in): 46%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students

50%

Low-income (Pell)

42%

First-generation

44%

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: $30

Campus safety

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

Reported offenses in an average year

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

0.3reported offenses a year

0 violent a year0.3 property a year

By offense type, per year

Motor vehicle theft

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

$9,483

$30–48k

$9,105

$48–75k

$11,868

$75–110k

$15,585

$110k+

$16,821

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

$1,874

average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 7% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,874. 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 671 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): $46,297
Typical debt at graduation: $11,432
Debt vs. one year's pay: 25%
Out-earn a HS grad: 59%

Typical debt would take roughly 2.5 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

$40,872

Men

$53,167

Men out-earn women by $12,295 (30%) 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: 8°F
Annual rain: 32.8″
Annual snow: 54″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Eau Claire 3SW, WI US station (0.7 mi from campus).

What Chippewa Valley Technical College graduates study — and earn

Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing AssistantsCert.

505 grads$37k 1 yr$69k 5 yr$12k debt

505$37,386$69,051$12,000 Business Administration, Management and OperationsCert.

206 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

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

165 grads$65k 1 yr$70k 5 yr$23k debt

165$64,532$69,998$23,151 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment ProfessionsCert.

150 grads$38k 1 yr— 5 yr$12k debt

150$38,272—$12,000 Precision Metal WorkingCert.

130 grads$49k 1 yr$57k 5 yr$8k debt

130$48,638$57,152$8,109 Business Administration, Management and OperationsAssoc.

96 grads$39k 1 yr$48k 5 yr$18k debt

96$39,344$47,889$18,445 Computer/Information Technology Administration and ManagementCert.

76 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

76———Accounting and Related ServicesCert.

70 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

70———Ground TransportationCert.

65 grads— 1 yr$51k 5 yr$8k debt

65—$51,271$8,354 Criminal Justice and CorrectionsCert.

62 grads$61k 1 yr$63k 5 yr$15k debt

62$60,737$62,796$15,335 Electrical and Power Transmission InstallersCert.

52 grads$61k 1 yr$94k 5 yr$6k debt

52$60,950$93,910$5,500 Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR)Cert.

48 grads$43k 1 yr— 5 yr$6k debt

48$42,963—$5,500

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 Chippewa Valley Technical College

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Chippewa Valley Technical College side by side →

Waukesha County Technical College

Public

Pewaukee, Wisconsin · Large suburb · 18 mi to Milwaukee

Students: 4,955
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 10%
Earnings: $47k

Fox Valley Technical College

Public

Appleton, Wisconsin · Midsize suburb · 27 mi to Green Bay

Students: 5,825
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 5%
Earnings: $46k

Western Technical College

Public

La Crosse, Wisconsin · Small city · 106 mi to Madison

Students: 3,183
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 18%
Earnings: $45k

Northcentral Technical College

Public

Wausau, Wisconsin · Small city · 87 mi to Green Bay

Students: 3,257
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 7%
Earnings: $45k

Northeast Wisconsin Technical College

Public

Green Bay, Wisconsin · Midsize city · 5 mi to Green Bay

Students: 5,704
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 11%
Earnings: $45k

Moraine Park Technical College

Public

Fond du Lac, Wisconsin · Small city · 54 mi to Green Bay

Students: 2,464
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 7%
Earnings: $44k

Colleges near Chippewa Valley Technical College

University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire

Eau Claire, WI · Public · Bachelor's · 8,895 students

< 1 mi

The Professional Hair Design Academy

Eau Claire, WI · Private for-profit · Certificate · 60 students

2 mi

University of Wisconsin-Stout

Menomonie, WI · Public · Bachelor's · 5,842 students

21 mi

Northwood Technical College

Rice Lake, WI · Public · Certificate · 2,149 students

49 mi

Winona State University

Winona, MN · Public · Bachelor's · 5,144 students

52 mi

Saint Mary's University of Minnesota

Winona, MN · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,073 students

53 mi

Minnesota State College Southeast

Winona, MN · Public · Certificate · 1,388 students

54 mi

University of Wisconsin-River Falls

River Falls, WI · Public · Bachelor's · 4,205 students

55 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.