Public · Community college

Laurel Ridge Community College

Middletown, Virginia · Fringe rural

15%
Transfer rate: $6,013
Avg net price: 45%
Grad / completion: $41,000
Median earnings

Laurel Ridge Community College is a public certificate-granting institution in Middletown, Virginia (fringe rural setting), enrolling 3,195 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicMidsize · 3,195 undergradsFringe ruralCold winters

About Middletown, Virginia

Middletown is a town in Frederick County, Virginia, United States, in the northern Shenandoah Valley. Belle Grove Plantation, about a mile southwest of Middletown, was first settled in about 1750, and its historic Federal-style manor house was completed in 1797. (Wikipedia)

Setting: Fringe rural
Highest degree offered: Associate
Nearest big city: 67 miles to Washington, DC
To the ocean: 62 miles
Nearest airport: 44 miles to Washington Dulles (IAD) · major hub

How Laurel Ridge Community College compares

Graduation rate45%

Higher than 31% · #40 of 65 in Virginia

First-year retention69%

Higher than 41%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$41,000

Higher than 72% · #19 of 62 in Virginia

Average net price$6,013

Cheaper than 86% · #16 cheapest of 61 in Virginia

Median debt at graduation$9,750

Lower than 50%

Student–faculty ratio28 : 1

Lower than 7%

Undergraduate enrollment3,195

Larger than 87%

Percentiles compare Laurel Ridge 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 Virginia.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

Women2,08765%
Men1,10835%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

White62%
Black6.5%
Hispanic19%
Asian2.3%
Other or multiracial11%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment: 3,195
Student–faculty ratio: 28 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 18%
First-generation students: 51%
Students over 25: 17%
Median family income: $27,630
Avg faculty salary (academic year): $74,682
Endowment: $9,761,545

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 913 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

From Virginia98%
Other U.S. states2.0%

Most first-years stay in state — Laurel Ridge Community College draws overwhelmingly from Virginia.

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: $5,072
Out-of-state tuition: $11,510
Room & board: —
Books & supplies: $1,470
Total cost of attendance: $12,110
Average net price: $6,013

Outcomes

Graduated: 45%
First-year retention: 69%
Transferred to another college: 15%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $36,455
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $41,000
Median debt at graduation: $9,750
Students with federal loans: 2%
Paying down their loans (1 year in): 37%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students

45%

Low-income (Pell)

24%

First-generation

23%

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

Campus safety

Safety grade: A
Reported offenses per 1,000 students: 0.0 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024): 0
Property offenses (2022–2024): 0

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

$4,521

$30–48k

$5,614

$48–75k

$6,467

$75–110k

$7,386

$110k+

$10,827

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.

19%

of first-years get a grant from the school

$2,371

average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 19% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $2,371. 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 517 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): $41,000
Typical debt at graduation: $9,750
Debt vs. one year's pay: 24%
Out-earn a HS grad: 42%

Typical debt would take roughly 2.4 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

$38,092

Men

$46,529

Men out-earn women by $8,437 (22%) 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: 85°F
Winter low: 21°F
Annual rain: 40.1″
Annual snow: 25.1″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Star Tannery, VA US station (10.1 mi from campus).

What Laurel Ridge Community College graduates study — and earn

Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesAssoc.

431 grads$28k 1 yr$45k 5 yr$9k debt

431$28,017$44,620$8,865 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesCert.

260 grads$16k 1 yr$44k 5 yr— debt

260$15,637$44,289—Biological and Physical SciencesAssoc.

133 grads$38k 1 yr$51k 5 yr$8k debt

133$37,850$50,568$8,400 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment ProfessionsCert.

108 grads$36k 1 yr$56k 5 yr$9k debt

108$36,165$55,825$9,075 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical NursingAssoc.

77 grads$70k 1 yr$73k 5 yr$16k debt

77$69,986$73,312$16,450 Electrical/Electronic Engineering Technologies/TechniciansCert.

62 grads— 1 yr$59k 5 yr— debt

62—$59,142—Business Administration, Management and OperationsCert.

41 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

41———Human Development, Family Studies, and Related ServicesCert.

23 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

23———Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment ProfessionsAssoc.

20 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

20———Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing AssistantsCert.

18 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

18———Computer/Information Technology Administration and ManagementAssoc.

16 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

16———Computer ScienceCert.

14 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

14———

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 Laurel Ridge Community College

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

Piedmont Virginia Community College

Public

Charlottesville, Virginia · Midsize suburb · 66 mi to Richmond

Students: 3,045
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 12%
Earnings: $41k

Virginia Western Community College

Public

Roanoke, Virginia · Small city · 2 mi to Roanoke

Students: 3,898
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 14%
Earnings: $39k

New River Community College

Public

Dublin, Virginia · Distant town · 43 mi to Roanoke

Students: 1,965
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 7%
Earnings: $40k

Virginia Peninsula Community College

Public

Hampton, Virginia · Large suburb · 16 mi to Norfolk

Students: 3,941
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 16%
Earnings: $38k

Germanna Community College

Public

Locust Grove, Virginia · Fringe rural · 54 mi to Washington

Students: 5,508
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 12%
Earnings: $40k

Brightpoint Community College

Public

Chester, Virginia · Large suburb · 14 mi to Richmond

Students: 5,792
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 18%
Earnings: $41k

Colleges near Laurel Ridge Community College

Shenandoah University

Winchester, VA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 2,116 students

11 mi

Blue Ridge Community and Technical College

Martinsburg, WV · Public · Associate · 1,661 students

31 mi

Patrick Henry College

Purcellville, VA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 395 students

32 mi

International Beauty School

Martinsburg, WV · Private for-profit · Certificate · 86 students

33 mi

Valley College-Martinsburg

Martinsburg, WV · Private nonprofit · Certificate · 765 students

35 mi

Eastern West Virginia Community and Technical College

Moorefield, WV · Public · Associate · 225 students

36 mi

Shepherd University

Shepherdstown, WV · Public · Bachelor's · 2,344 students

37 mi

James Rumsey Technical Institute

Martinsburg, WV · Public · Certificate · 99 students

38 mi

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.