Public · Community college

Florida SouthWestern State College

Fort Myers, Florida · Large suburb

20%
Transfer rate
$7,247
Avg net price
39%
Grad / completion
$43,421
Median earnings

Florida SouthWestern State College is a public associate-granting institution in Fort Myers, Florida (large suburb setting), enrolling 11,052 undergraduates. It is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicMidsize · 11,052 undergradsLarge suburbNJCAA Division IMild wintersNear the coast

About Fort Myers, Florida

Fort Myers is a city in and the county seat of Lee County, Florida, United States. According to some historians, the Calusa capital was located near Fort Myers. Following European contact, Spain had colonial influence in Florida, succeeded by Great Britain and lastly the United States. The Calusa Nature Center and Planetarium is a private, not-for-profit, environmental education organization. Set on a 105-acre (0.42 km2) site, it has a museum, three nature trails, a planetarium, butterfly and bird aviaries, a gift shop and meeting and picnic areas. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large suburb
Highest degree offered
Bachelor's
To the ocean
2 miles
Nearest airport
8 miles to Southwest Florida (RSW) · major hub

How Florida SouthWestern State College compares

Graduation rate39%

Higher than 25% · #185 of 211 in Florida

Earnings, 10 years after entry$43,421

Higher than 80% · #17 of 171 in Florida

Average net price$7,247

Cheaper than 81% · #35 cheapest of 207 in Florida

Median debt at graduation$8,000

Lower than 73%

Student–faculty ratio27 : 1

Lower than 8%

Undergraduate enrollment11,052

Larger than 97%

Percentiles compare Florida SouthWestern State 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 Florida.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

11,052undergrads
  • Women6,86962%
  • Men4,18338%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White32%
  • Black13%
  • Hispanic40%
  • Asian1.7%
  • Other or multiracial13%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
11,052
Student–faculty ratio
27 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
35%
First-generation students
50%
Students over 25
21%
Median family income
$25,854
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$63,468
Endowment
$49,289,947

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 2,888 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Florida100%

Most first-years stay in state — Florida SouthWestern State College draws overwhelmingly from Florida.

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
$3,401
Out-of-state tuition
$12,979
Room & board
$11,185
Books & supplies
$1,470
Total cost of attendance
$14,254
Average net price
$7,247

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
39%
First-year retention
Transferred to another college
20%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$37,028
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$43,421
Median debt at graduation
$8,000
Students with federal loans
11%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
38%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
39%
Low-income (Pell)
27%
First-generation
27%

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
402
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
4%
Housing charge (year)
$7,060
Application fee
$30
Athletics
NJCAA Division I
Varsity athletes
89 (41 men · 48 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 (4)

Baseball28
Basketball24
Softball22
Volleyball15

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

Campus safety

Safety grade
A
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
0.2 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
3
Property offenses (2022–2024)
4

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 4 campuses (14,301 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.

2.3reported offenses a year
1.0 violent a year1.3 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary
1.3
Fondling
0.7
Robbery
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
$6,011
$30–48k
$6,484
$48–75k
$8,516
$75–110k
$11,200
$110k+
$13,337

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.

52%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$1,098
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 52% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,098. 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 1,828 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)
$43,421
Typical debt at graduation
$8,000
Debt vs. one year's pay
18%
Out-earn a HS grad
52%

Typical debt would take roughly 1.8 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
$41,242
Men
$47,645

Men out-earn women by $6,403 (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
92°F
Winter low
54°F
Annual rain
57.4″

Average temperature

HighLow
50°80°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.05.210JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, FT Myers Page Fld AP, FL US station (2.8 mi from campus).

What Florida SouthWestern State 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 Florida SouthWestern State College

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Florida SouthWestern State College side by side →

Colleges near Florida SouthWestern State 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.