Public · Community college
Jefferson Community College
Watertown, New York · Small city
- 20%
- Transfer rate
- $11,923
- Avg net price
- 28%
- Grad / completion
- $39,991
- Median earnings
Jefferson Community College is a public associate-granting institution in Watertown, New York (small city setting), enrolling 1,499 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.
About Watertown, New York
Watertown is a city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, New York, United States. Watertown got its name from straddling the Black River. It is unknown which settler chose it, but it is commonly believed to have been a consensus choice in order to attract mills. The Roswell P. Flower Memorial Library was built in 1904 as a memorial to Flower by his daughter, Emma Flower Taylor. The area also has a large Amish population. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Small city
- Highest degree offered
- Associate
- Nearest big city
- 66 miles to Syracuse, NY
- To Great Lakes shore
- 6 miles
- Nearest airport
- 4 miles to Watertown (ART)
How Jefferson Community College compares
Higher than 10% · #160 of 185 in New York
Higher than 17%
Higher than 69% · #86 of 148 in New York
Cheaper than 63% · #50 cheapest of 175 in New York
Lower than 29%
Lower than 23%
Larger than 78%
Percentiles compare Jefferson 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 New York.
Student body
Undergraduates by gender
- Women87058%
- Men62942%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White69%
- Black7.5%
- Hispanic11%
- Asian2.0%
- Other or multiracial10%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 1,499
- Student–faculty ratio
- 21 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 34%
- First-generation students
- 44%
- Students over 25
- 25%
- Median family income
- $28,942
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $62,136
- Endowment
- $8,429,280
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 531 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.
- From New York93%
- Other U.S. states3.4%
- International3.4%
Most first-years stay in state — Jefferson Community College draws overwhelmingly from New York.
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
- $6,264
- Out-of-state tuition
- $11,700
- Room & board
- $14,308
- Books & supplies
- $1,000
- Total cost of attendance
- $19,286
- Average net price
- $11,923
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
- 28%
- First-year retention
- 56%
- Transferred to another college
- 20%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $36,576
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $39,991
- Median debt at graduation
- $12,000
- Students with federal loans
- 22%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 42%
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
- Yes
- Dorm capacity
- 294
- Dorm capacity vs undergrads
- 20%
- Housing charge (year)
- $7,724
- Meal plan (year)
- $6,300
- Application fee
- Free
- Athletics
- NJCAA Division III
- Varsity athletes
- 143 (81 men · 62 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)
Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.
Campus safety
- Safety grade
- A
- Reported offenses per 1,000 students
- 0.0 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 0
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 0
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (2,319 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.
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: 16% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,750. 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 446 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)
- $39,991
- Typical debt at graduation
- $12,000
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 30%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 41%
Typical debt would take roughly 3.0 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 $9,849 (27%) 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
- 80°F
- Winter low
- 11°F
- Annual rain
- 44.4″
- Annual snow
- 116.4″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Watertown, NY US station (3.2 mi from campus).
What Jefferson 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 Jefferson Community College
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Jefferson Community College side by side →
Tompkins Cortland Community College
Dryden, New York · Distant rural · 38 mi to Syracuse
- Students
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- Tuition
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- Transfer
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- Earnings
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Herkimer County Community College
Herkimer, New York · Fringe town · 58 mi to Syracuse
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- Transfer
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SUNY Adirondack
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Jamestown Community College
Jamestown, New York · Distant town · 44 mi to Erie
- Students
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- Transfer
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Schenectady County Community College
Schenectady, New York · Small city · 15 mi to Albany
- Students
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Cayuga County Community College
Auburn, New York · Distant town · 21 mi to Syracuse
- Students
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- Tuition
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- Transfer
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- Earnings
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Colleges near Jefferson Community College
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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.