Public · Community college

Great Basin College

Elko, Nevada · Remote town

#3 best value in Nevada
14%
Transfer rate
$8,471
Avg net price
41%
Grad / completion
$39,289
Median earnings

Great Basin College is a public certificate-granting institution in Elko, Nevada (remote town setting), enrolling 1,900 undergraduates. It is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicSmall · 1,900 undergradsRemote townCold wintersSnowy

About Elko, Nevada

Elko is a city in and the county seat of Elko County, Nevada, United States. Though Elko lies along the route of the historic California Trail, its roots as a town date only back to its establishment in 1868 by settlers, when it was at the east end of the railroad tracks built by the Central Pacific Railroad (the portion of the First transcontinental railroad built from California to Utah). Elko's economy is based heavily on gold mining, with ranching, tourism and the casino industry providing additional jobs. The city is considered the capital of Nevada's goldbelt. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Remote town
Highest degree offered
Bachelor's
Nearest big city
193 miles to Boise, ID
To the ocean
361 miles
Nearest airport
2 miles to Elko (EKO)

How Great Basin College compares

Graduation rate41%

Higher than 27% · #21 of 23 in Nevada

First-year retention59%

Higher than 21%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$39,289

Higher than 66% · #8 of 22 in Nevada

Average net price$8,471

Cheaper than 77% · #3 cheapest of 25 in Nevada

Median debt at graduation$15,750

Lower than 13%

Student–faculty ratio18 : 1

Lower than 39%

Undergraduate enrollment1,900

Larger than 81%

Percentiles compare Great Basin 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 Nevada.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

1,900undergrads
  • Women1,26066%
  • Men64034%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White56%
  • Black3.2%
  • Hispanic28%
  • Asian2.0%
  • Other or multiracial11%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
1,900
Student–faculty ratio
18 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
23%
First-generation students
52%
Students over 25
39%
Median family income
$22,838
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$86,175
Endowment
$933,000

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 257 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Nevada95%
  • Other U.S. states5.2%

Most first-years stay in state — Great Basin College draws overwhelmingly from Nevada.

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
$3,923
Out-of-state tuition
$13,883
Room & board
$6,000
Books & supplies
$1,670
Total cost of attendance
$12,947
Average net price
$8,471

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 (within 6 years)
41%
Graduated on time (4 years)
2%
First-year retention
59%
Transferred to another college
14%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$35,615
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$39,289
Median debt at graduation
$15,750
Students with federal loans
5%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
40%

About 39% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
2%
Low-income (Pell)
30%

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
112
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
6%
Housing charge (year)
$4,032
Application fee
$10

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%.

Campus safety

Safety grade
C
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
2.3 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
22
Property offenses (2022–2024)
1

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 5 campuses (3,320 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.

7.7reported offenses a year
7.3 violent a year0.3 property a year

By offense type, per year

Statutory rape
7.0
Fondling
0.3
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
$6,967
$30–48k
$7,631
$48–75k
$9,639
$75–110k
$11,910
$110k+
$12,947

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.

Four-year (or more) true cost

Net price for your family's income, projected across the time it actually takes students here to graduate.

Est. total to a degree
$52,307

$9,639/year × about 5.4 years — most students here don't finish in exactly four, and each extra term adds cost. A planning estimate from net-price and graduation-timing data, not a bill.

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.

8%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$1,945
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 8% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,945. 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 116 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)
$39,289
Typical debt at graduation
$15,750
Debt vs. one year's pay
40%
Out-earn a HS grad
46%

Typical debt would take roughly 4.0 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
$32,987
Men
$62,636

Men out-earn women by $29,649 (90%) 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
15°F
Annual rain
10″
Annual snow
41.2″

Average temperature

HighLow
10°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.00.61.2JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Elko Rgnl AP, NV US station (1.5 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 Great Basin College

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

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.