Private for-profit · Community college
Empire Beauty School-Reading
Reading, Pennsylvania · Large suburb
- 0%
- Transfer rate
- $18,160
- Avg net price
- 82%
- Grad / completion
- $23,921
- Median earnings
Empire Beauty School-Reading is a private for-profit certificate-granting institution in Reading, Pennsylvania (large suburb setting), enrolling 90 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.
About Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading is a city in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. The Colony of Pennsylvania was a 1680 land grant from King Charles II of England to William Penn. Large employers based in Reading and surrounding communities include Boscov's, EnerSys, Carpenter, Penske Truck Leasing, and Redner's Markets. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Large suburb
- Highest degree offered
- Certificate
- Nearest big city
- 28 miles to Allentown, PA
- To the ocean
- 46 miles
- Nearest airport
- 26 miles to Lancaster (LNS)
How Empire Beauty School-Reading compares
Higher than 80% · #41 of 151 in Pennsylvania
Higher than 66%
Higher than 14% · #121 of 137 in Pennsylvania
Cheaper than 39% · #78 cheapest of 152 in Pennsylvania
Lower than 39%
Lower than 56%
Larger than 25%
Percentiles compare Empire Beauty School-Reading 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
- Women8594%
- Men56%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White30%
- Black7.8%
- Hispanic43%
- Asian1.1%
- Other or multiracial18%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 90
- Student–faculty ratio
- 15 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 65%
- First-generation students
- 50%
- Students over 25
- 36%
- Median family income
- $15,061
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 42 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.
- From Pennsylvania100%
Most first-years stay in state — Empire Beauty School-Reading 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
- $18,160
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
- 82%
- First-year retention
- 81%
- Transferred to another college
- 0%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $20,215
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $23,921
- Median debt at graduation
- $10,667
- Students with federal loans
- 64%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 26%
Graduating on time
By student background (4 years)
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
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.
Does the school pay you to attend?
Empire Beauty School-Reading funds essentially no grants of its own — almost all aid here comes from federal (Pell), state, or outside sources rather than the school's own discount. Its sticker price is what it is.
Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid, 2022–23 full-time first-year undergraduates.
Is it worth it?
A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.
- Median earnings (10 years)
- $23,921
- Typical debt at graduation
- $10,667
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 45%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 21%
Typical debt would take roughly 4.5 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.
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.
Men out-earn women by $2,732 (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
- 86°F
- Winter low
- 23°F
- Annual rain
- 45.2″
- Annual snow
- 21.3″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Reading Spaatz Fld, PA US station (2.1 mi from campus).
What Empire Beauty School-Reading 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 Empire Beauty School-Reading
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Empire Beauty School-Reading side by side →
Empire Beauty School-York
York, Pennsylvania · Midsize suburb · 20 mi to Lancaster
- Students
- 90
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $24k
Empire Beauty School-Pottsville
Pottsville, Pennsylvania · Distant town · 37 mi to Allentown
- Students
- 74
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $24k
Empire Beauty School-NE Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania · Large city · 14 mi to Philadelphia
- Students
- 110
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $24k
Empire Beauty School-West Mifflin
West Mifflin, Pennsylvania · Large suburb · 7 mi to Pittsburgh
- Students
- 82
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $25k
Empire Beauty School-Lancaster
Lancaster, Pennsylvania · Large suburb · 3 mi to Lancaster
- Students
- 85
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $25k
Empire Beauty School-Lehigh Valley
Whitehall, Pennsylvania · Large suburb · 2 mi to Allentown
- Students
- 99
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $25k
Colleges near Empire Beauty School-Reading
Albright College
Reading, PA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,217 students
Reading Area Community College
Reading, PA · Public · Associate · 3,703 students
Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Berks
Reading, PA · Public · Bachelor's · 1,872 students
Miller-Motte College-Berks Technical Institute
Wyomissing, PA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 544 students
Reading Hospital School of Health Sciences
Reading, PA · Private nonprofit · Certificate · 294 students
American Barber and Beauty Academy
Reading, PA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 104 students
Berks Career & Technology Center
Leesport, PA · Public · Certificate · 47 students
Alvernia University
Reading, PA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 2,152 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.