Public · Community college

Gaston College

Dallas, North Carolina · Midsize suburb

12%
Transfer rate
$6,592
Avg net price
63%
Grad / completion
$35,386
Median earnings

Gaston College is a public certificate-granting institution in Dallas, North Carolina (midsize suburb setting), enrolling 3,518 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicMidsize · 3,518 undergradsMidsize suburbNJCAA Division ICold winters

About Dallas, North Carolina

Dallas is a town in Gaston County, North Carolina, United States, and a suburb of Charlotte, located north of Gastonia. Dallas was officially incorporated in 1863 and is the oldest incorporated town in Gaston County. It served as the original county seat for Gaston County from 1846 until 1911. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Midsize suburb
Highest degree offered
Associate
To the ocean
172 miles
Nearest airport
15 miles to Charlotte Douglas (CLT) · major hub

How Gaston College compares

Graduation rate63%

Higher than 53% · #21 of 90 in North Carolina

First-year retention54%

Higher than 15%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$35,386

Higher than 50% · #22 of 84 in North Carolina

Average net price$6,592

Cheaper than 84% · #36 cheapest of 90 in North Carolina

Student–faculty ratio17 : 1

Lower than 44%

Undergraduate enrollment3,518

Larger than 88%

Percentiles compare Gaston 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 North Carolina.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

3,518undergrads
  • Women2,38868%
  • Men1,13032%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White51%
  • Black20%
  • Hispanic12%
  • Asian1.0%
  • Other or multiracial16%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
3,518
Student–faculty ratio
17 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
26%
First-generation students
48%
Students over 25
23%
Median family income
$19,769
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$57,222
Endowment
$6,165,423

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Cost

In-state tuition
$3,186
Out-of-state tuition
$9,330
Room & board
Books & supplies
$1,470
Total cost of attendance
$16,866
Average net price
$6,592

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
54%
Transferred to another college
12%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$31,988
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$35,386
Median debt at graduation
Students with federal loans
0%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
63%
First-generation
17%

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
Free
Athletics
NJCAA Division I
Varsity athletes
85 (52 men · 33 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 (5)

Baseball36
Softball20
Basketball16
Cross Country7
Beach Volleyball6

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

Campus safety

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

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 3 campuses (6,443 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.

0.3reported offenses a year
0 violent a year0.3 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary
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
$5,784
$30–48k
$5,579
$48–75k
$8,432
$75–110k
$10,952
$110k+
$13,399

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.

20%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$1,921
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 20% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,921. 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 441 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)
$35,386
Typical debt at graduation
Debt vs. one year's pay
Out-earn a HS grad
37%
Weigh it value

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.

Women
$32,466
Men
$44,106

Men out-earn women by $11,640 (36%) 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
91°F
Winter low
31°F
Annual rain
44″
Annual snow
1.2″

Average temperature

HighLow
20°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.34.5JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Gastonia, NC US station (4 mi from campus).

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 Gaston College

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

Colleges near Gaston 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.