Public · Community college

Heartland Community College

Normal, Illinois · Midsize suburb

13%
Transfer rate
$12,013
Avg net price
54%
Grad / completion
$40,768
Median earnings

Heartland Community College is a public certificate-granting institution in Normal, Illinois (midsize suburb setting), enrolling 2,997 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicMidsize · 2,997 undergradsMidsize suburbNJCAA Division IICold winters

About Normal, Illinois

Normal is a town in McLean County, Illinois, United States. From its founding, it was generally recognized that Jesse W. Fell was the force behind the creation of the town. The Children's Discovery Museum in uptown Normal provides hands-on exhibits, classes and programs for children. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Midsize suburb
Highest degree offered
Associate
Nearest big city
32 miles to Peoria, IL
To Great Lakes shore
113 miles
Nearest airport
6 miles to Central Illinois Regional Airport at Bloomington-Normal (BMI)

How Heartland Community College compares

Graduation rate54%

Higher than 41% · #68 of 122 in Illinois

First-year retention74%

Higher than 52%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$40,768

Higher than 71% · #27 of 113 in Illinois

Average net price$12,013

Cheaper than 62% · #57 cheapest of 123 in Illinois

Median debt at graduation$7,826

Lower than 77%

Student–faculty ratio18 : 1

Lower than 39%

Undergraduate enrollment2,997

Larger than 86%

Percentiles compare Heartland Community 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 Illinois.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

2,997undergrads
  • Women1,69557%
  • Men1,30243%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White62%
  • Black14%
  • Hispanic12%
  • Asian1.8%
  • Other or multiracial9.9%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
2,997
Student–faculty ratio
18 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
21%
First-generation students
40%
Students over 25
23%
Median family income
$26,248
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$74,772
Endowment
$17,356,738

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 721 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Illinois96%
  • Other U.S. states1.2%
  • International2.5%

Most first-years stay in state — Heartland Community College draws overwhelmingly from Illinois.

3% came from outside the U.S. 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
$5,550
Out-of-state tuition
$13,110
Room & board
Books & supplies
$900
Total cost of attendance
$16,727
Average net price
$12,013

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
54%
First-year retention
74%
Transferred to another college
13%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$35,616
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$40,768
Median debt at graduation
$7,826
Students with federal loans
8%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
41%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
54%
Low-income (Pell)
27%
First-generation
28%

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 II
Varsity athletes
176 (106 men · 70 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 (7)

Soccer51
Baseball34
Other Sports30
Softball18
Cross Country17
Volleyball16
Golf10

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)
0

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (4,855 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.

1.0reported offenses a year
1.0 violent a year0 property a year

By offense type, per year

Fondling
0.3
Robbery
0.3
Aggravated assault
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
$9,593
$30–48k
$10,872
$48–75k
$12,959
$75–110k
$15,469
$110k+
$16,073

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.

36%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$2,722
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 36% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $2,722. 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 478 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)
$40,768
Typical debt at graduation
$7,826
Debt vs. one year's pay
19%
Out-earn a HS grad
41%

Typical debt would take roughly 1.9 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
$36,903
Men
$46,635

Men out-earn women by $9,732 (26%) 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
16°F
Annual rain
39.4″
Annual snow
20.1″

Average temperature

HighLow
10°50°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.44.8JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Normal 4NE, IL US station (3.6 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 Heartland Community College

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

Colleges near Heartland Community 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.