Public · Community college

Jackson College

Jackson, Michigan · Fringe rural

33%
Transfer rate
$7,761
Avg net price
16%
Grad / completion
$36,898
Median earnings

Jackson College is a public certificate-granting institution in Jackson, Michigan (fringe rural setting), enrolling 3,422 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicMidsize · 3,422 undergradsFringe ruralNJCAA Division IICold wintersSnowy

About Jackson, Michigan

Jackson is a city in Jackson County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. On July 3, 1829, Horace Blackman, accompanied by Alexander Laverty, a land surveyor, and Pewytum, an Indian guide, forded the Grand River and made camp for the night at a site now marked as Trail and N. Jackson Street. Blackman had hired Laverty and Pewytum to guide him west. Jackson's parks and recreation department includes a golf course, swimming pool, sporting fields, and 26 parks, totaling 645 acres. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Fringe rural
Highest degree offered
Bachelor's
Nearest big city
40 miles to Lansing, MI
To Great Lakes shore
56 miles
Nearest airport
43 miles to Capital Region (LAN)

How Jackson College compares

Graduation rate16%

Higher than 2% · #95 of 96 in Michigan

Earnings, 10 years after entry$36,898

Higher than 56% · #21 of 88 in Michigan

Average net price$7,761

Cheaper than 80% · #27 cheapest of 94 in Michigan

Median debt at graduation$13,875

Lower than 18%

Student–faculty ratio18 : 1

Lower than 39%

Undergraduate enrollment3,422

Larger than 88%

Percentiles compare Jackson 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 Michigan.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

3,422undergrads
  • Women1,78952%
  • Men1,63348%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White66%
  • Black15%
  • Hispanic8.1%
  • Asian0.7%
  • Other or multiracial10%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
3,422
Student–faculty ratio
18 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
37%
First-generation students
46%
Students over 25
29%
Median family income
$18,840
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$63,468
Endowment
$11,828,789

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

Cost

In-state tuition
$7,350
Out-of-state tuition
$10,200
Room & board
$11,510
Books & supplies
$1,170
Total cost of attendance
$18,708
Average net price
$7,761

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)
16%
Graduated on time (4 years)
33%
First-year retention
Transferred to another college
33%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$31,956
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$36,898
Median debt at graduation
$13,875
Students with federal loans
17%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
26%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
33%
Low-income (Pell)
9%
First-generation
9%

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
398
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
12%
Housing charge (year)
$5,650
Meal plan (year)
$5,660
Application fee
Free
Athletics
NJCAA Division II
Varsity athletes
181 (103 men · 78 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 (9)

Soccer39
Baseball35
Basketball30
Other Sports18
Bowling16
Softball14
Volleyball12
Cross Country9
Golf8

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

Campus safety

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

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 3 campuses (5,086 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.

1.7reported offenses a year
1.3 violent a year0.3 property a year

By offense type, per year

Rape
0.7
Fondling
0.3
Aggravated assault
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
$5,227
$30–48k
$6,062
$48–75k
$8,539
$75–110k
$13,799
$110k+
$15,563

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
$34,156

$8,539/year × about 4.0 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.

35%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$2,356
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 35% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $2,356. 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 202 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)
$36,898
Typical debt at graduation
$13,875
Debt vs. one year's pay
38%
Out-earn a HS grad
44%

Typical debt would take roughly 3.8 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
$33,372
Men
$42,961

Men out-earn women by $9,589 (29%) 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
82°F
Winter low
18°F
Annual rain
32.2″
Annual snow
44.1″

Average temperature

HighLow
10°50°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.01.93.8JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Jackson Reynolds Fld, MI US station (7.7 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 Jackson College

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

Colleges near Jackson 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.