Public · Community college
Howard Community College
Columbia, Maryland · Midsize city
- 26%
- Transfer rate
- $11,133
- Avg net price
- 24%
- Grad / completion
- $49,020
- Median earnings
Howard Community College is a public associate-granting institution in Columbia, Maryland (midsize city setting), enrolling 6,649 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.
About Columbia, Maryland
Columbia is a planned community in Howard County, Maryland, United States, consisting of 10 self-contained villages. Columbia was founded in 1967 by James W. Rouse, a native of Easton, Maryland. In 1935, Rouse obtained a job in Baltimore with the Federal Housing Administration, a New Deal agency whose purpose was to promote home ownership and home construction. Merriweather Post Pavilion, a well-known outdoor concert venue, attracts many prominent performers. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Midsize city
- Highest degree offered
- Associate
- Nearest big city
- 15 miles to Baltimore, MD
- To the ocean
- 14 miles
- Nearest airport
- 12 miles to Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall (BWI) · major hub
How Howard Community College compares
Higher than 7% · #34 of 38 in Maryland
Higher than 41%
Higher than 89% · #2 of 38 in Maryland
Cheaper than 66% · #15 cheapest of 40 in Maryland
Lower than 42%
Lower than 62%
Larger than 94%
Percentiles compare Howard 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 Maryland.
Student body
Undergraduates by gender
- Women4,13462%
- Men2,51538%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White22%
- Black32%
- Hispanic15%
- Asian12%
- Other or multiracial19%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 6,649
- Student–faculty ratio
- 14 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 27%
- First-generation students
- 39%
- Students over 25
- 27%
- Median family income
- $25,404
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $80,631
- Endowment
- $14,145,624
Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.
Cost
- In-state tuition
- $4,080
- Out-of-state tuition
- $9,624
- Room & board
- —
- Books & supplies
- $2,400
- Total cost of attendance
- $16,774
- Average net price
- $11,133
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
- 24%
- First-year retention
- 69%
- Transferred to another college
- 26%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $39,195
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $49,020
- Median debt at graduation
- $10,500
- Students with federal loans
- 7%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 31%
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
- Free
- Athletics
- NJCAA Division II
- Varsity athletes
- 224 (145 men · 79 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 (8)
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)
- 2
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 4
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (8,643 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.
By offense type, per year
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.
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.
Modest institutional aid: 34% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,664. 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 637 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)
- $49,020
- Typical debt at graduation
- $10,500
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 21%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 54%
Typical debt would take roughly 2.1 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 $9,224 (20%) 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
- 89°F
- Winter low
- 26°F
- Annual rain
- 47.5″
- Annual snow
- 19.3″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Laurel 3 W, MD US station (9 mi from campus).
What Howard Community 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 Howard Community College
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Howard Community College side by side →
Prince George's Community College
Largo, Maryland · Large suburb · 11 mi to Washington
- Students
- 8,815
- Tuition
- $4k
- Transfer
- 14%
- Earnings
- $48k
Frederick Community College
Frederick, Maryland · Small city · 43 mi to Washington
- Students
- 4,203
- Tuition
- $4k
- Transfer
- 24%
- Earnings
- $46k
Anne Arundel Community College
Arnold, Maryland · Large suburb · 17 mi to Baltimore
- Students
- 8,997
- Tuition
- $4k
- Transfer
- 19%
- Earnings
- $46k
College of Southern Maryland
La Plata, Maryland · Fringe rural · 24 mi to Washington
- Students
- 4,512
- Tuition
- $4k
- Transfer
- 19%
- Earnings
- $44k
Harford Community College
Bel Air, Maryland · Fringe rural · 26 mi to Baltimore
- Students
- 3,696
- Tuition
- $4k
- Transfer
- 21%
- Earnings
- $45k
Montgomery College
Rockville, Maryland · Small city · 15 mi to Washington
- Students
- 13,773
- Tuition
- $5k
- Transfer
- 19%
- Earnings
- $50k
Colleges near Howard Community College
Lincoln College of Technology-Columbia
Columbia, MD · Private for-profit · Certificate · 1,258 students
Paul Mitchell the School-Jessup
Jessup, MD · Private for-profit · Certificate · 131 students
Aspen Beauty Academy of Laurel
Laurel, MD · Private for-profit · Certificate · 118 students
University of Maryland-Baltimore County
Baltimore, MD · Public · Bachelor's · 10,701 students
North American Trade Schools
Baltimore, MD · Private for-profit · Certificate · 534 students
Cortiva Institute
Linthicum, MD · Private for-profit · Certificate · 225 students
Capitol Technology University
Laurel, MD · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 315 students
Coppin State University
Baltimore, MD · Public · Bachelor's · 1,844 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.














