Private for-profit · Community college

Empire Beauty School-Center City Philadelphia

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania · Large city

0%
Transfer rate: $17,520
Avg net price: 36%
Grad / completion: $22,377
Median earnings

Empire Beauty School-Center City Philadelphia is a private for-profit certificate-granting institution in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (large city setting), enrolling 279 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

Private for-profitSmall · 279 undergradsLarge cityCold wintersNear the coast

About Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, colloquially referred to as Philly, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the sixth-most populous city in the United States. Before the arrival of Europeans in the early 17th century, the Lenape, an Indian tribe also known as the Delaware Indians, lived in the village of Shackamaxon in present-day Philadelphia and the surrounding area. Philadelphia is home to many national historical sites that relate to the founding of the United States. Independence National Historical Park is the center of these historical landmarks and one of the country's 22 UNESCO World Heritage Sites. (Wikipedia)

Setting: Large city
Highest degree offered: Certificate
Nearest big city: Philadelphia, PA
To the ocean: 2 miles
Nearest airport: 7 miles to Philadelphia (PHL) · major hub

How Empire Beauty School-Center City Philadelphia compares

Graduation rate36%

Higher than 21% · #127 of 151 in Pennsylvania

First-year retention51%

Higher than 12%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$22,377

Higher than 10% · #132 of 137 in Pennsylvania

Average net price$17,520

Cheaper than 41% · #67 cheapest of 152 in Pennsylvania

Median debt at graduation$10,667

Lower than 39%

Student–faculty ratio23 : 1

Lower than 18%

Undergraduate enrollment279

Larger than 52%

Percentiles compare Empire Beauty School-Center City Philadelphia 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

Women26294%
Men176%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

White1.8%
Black62%
Hispanic6.1%
Asian0.7%
Other or multiracial29%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment: 279
Student–faculty ratio: 23 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 77%
First-generation students: 53%
Students over 25: 36%
Median family income: $10,876

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 164 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

From Pennsylvania98%
Other U.S. states1.8%

Most first-years stay in state — Empire Beauty School-Center City Philadelphia 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: —
Room & board: —
Total cost of attendance: —
Average net price: $17,520

Outcomes

Graduated: 36%
First-year retention: 51%
Transferred to another college: 0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $18,493
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $22,377
Median debt at graduation: $10,667
Students with federal loans: 66%
Paying down their loans (1 year in): 24%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students

36%

Low-income (Pell)

48%

First-generation

49%

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: $125

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

$17,254

$30–48k

$17,251

$48–75k

$19,075

$75–110k

$23,460

$110k+

$23,460

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.

22%

of first-years get a grant from the school

$387

average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 22% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $387. 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 165 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): $22,377
Typical debt at graduation: $10,667
Debt vs. one year's pay: 48%
Out-earn a HS grad: 17%

Typical debt would take roughly 4.8 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

$22,950

Men

$19,746

Women out-earn men by $3,204 (16%) 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: 50.7″
Annual snow: 16.1″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Phila Franklin Inst, PA US station (0.6 mi from campus).

What Empire Beauty School-Center City Philadelphia graduates study — and earn

Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services

73 grads$16k 1 yr$22k 5 yr$14k debt

73$16,062$22,064$13,583

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 Empire Beauty School-Center City Philadelphia

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Empire Beauty School-Center City Philadelphia side by side →

Empire Beauty School-Wyoming Valley

For-profit

Moosic, Pennsylvania · Large suburb · 3 mi to Scranton

Students: 176
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $24k

Empire Beauty School-Harrisburg

For-profit

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania · Large suburb · 3 mi to Harrisburg

Students: 152
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $22k

Empire Beauty School-Cheltenham

For-profit

Wyncote, Pennsylvania · Large suburb · 9 mi to Philadelphia

Students: 152
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $24k

Empire Beauty School-Springfield

For-profit

Springfield, Pennsylvania · Large suburb · 10 mi to Philadelphia

Students: 188
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $25k

The Beauty Institute-Ambler

For-profit

Ambler, Pennsylvania · Large suburb · 14 mi to Philadelphia

Students: 160
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $25k

Bella Capelli Academy

For-profit

Monroeville, Pennsylvania · Large suburb · 11 mi to Pittsburgh

Students: 259
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $26k

Colleges near Empire Beauty School-Center City Philadelphia

Peirce College

Philadelphia, PA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 799 students

< 1 mi

Health and Technology Training Institute

Philadelphia, PA · Private nonprofit · Certificate · 20 students

< 1 mi

Curtis Institute of Music

Philadelphia, PA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 109 students

< 1 mi

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

Philadelphia, PA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 23 students

< 1 mi

Academy of Vocal Arts

Philadelphia, PA · Private nonprofit · Graduate

< 1 mi

Thomas Jefferson University

Philadelphia, PA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 3,755 students

< 1 mi

Moore College of Art and Design

Philadelphia, PA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 535 students

1 mi

Community College of Philadelphia

Philadelphia, PA · Public · Associate · 11,948 students

1 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.