Public · Community college
Mercer County Technical Education Center
Princeton, West Virginia · Distant town
- 0%
- Transfer rate
- $2,225
- Avg net price
- 79%
- Grad / completion
- $33,511
- Median earnings
Mercer County Technical Education Center is a public certificate-granting institution in Princeton, West Virginia (distant town setting), enrolling 120 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.
About Princeton, West Virginia
Princeton is a city in Mercer County, West Virginia, United States, and its county seat. Princeton was named after the Battle of Princeton in Princeton, New Jersey, where General Hugh Mercer, the namesake of Mercer County, had died. When the county was formed in 1837, William Smith donated 1.5 acres of land for the county courthouse in what would become Princeton. The cultural hub the Chuck Mathena Center, which opened in July 2008, contains a 1,000-seat theater and meeting rooms for civic groups and events. Other cultural endeavors include the RiffRaff Arts Collective, the remodeled Princeton Public Library and a Railroad Museum. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Distant town
- Highest degree offered
- Certificate
- Nearest big city
- 64 miles to Roanoke, VA
- To the ocean
- 210 miles
- Nearest airport
- 30 miles to Raleigh County Memorial (BKW)
How Mercer County Technical Education Center compares
Higher than 75% · #17 of 42 in West Virginia
Higher than 53%
Higher than 44% · #21 of 40 in West Virginia
Cheaper than 98% · #5 cheapest of 42 in West Virginia
Lower than 78%
Larger than 32%
Percentiles compare Mercer County Technical Education Center 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 West Virginia.
Student body
Undergraduates by gender
- Women8571%
- Men3529%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White86%
- Black12%
- Hispanic0.8%
- Other or multiracial1.7%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 120
- Student–faculty ratio
- 11 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 62%
- First-generation students
- 62%
- Students over 25
- 41%
- Median family income
- $16,083
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 46 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.
- From West Virginia100%
Most first-years stay in state — Mercer County Technical Education Center draws overwhelmingly from West 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
- —
- Room & board
- —
- Total cost of attendance
- —
- Average net price
- $2,225
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
- 79%
- First-year retention
- 74%
- Transferred to another college
- 0%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $36,860
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $33,511
- Median debt at graduation
- —
- Students with federal loans
- 0%
Campus life & athletics
- On-campus housing
- No
- Application fee
- Free
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%.
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?
Mercer County Technical Education Center funds essentially no grants of its own — almost all aid here comes from federal (Pell), state, or outside sources rather than the school's own discount. Its sticker price is what it is.
Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid, 2022–23 full-time first-year undergraduates.
Is it worth it?
A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.
- Median earnings (10 years)
- $33,511
- Typical debt at graduation
- —
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- —
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 40%
The payoff is less clear-cut here — weigh the debt against the earnings and your intended field before borrowing heavily.
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.
Campus climate
- Summer high
- 82°F
- Winter low
- 22°F
- Annual rain
- 41.2″
- Annual snow
- 34.6″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Athens, WV US station (6.1 mi from campus).
What Mercer County Technical Education Center 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 Mercer County Technical Education Center
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Mercer County Technical Education Center side by side →
Ben Franklin Career Center
Dunbar, West Virginia · Midsize suburb · 7 mi to Charleston
- Students
- 78
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $38k
Cabell County Career Technology Center
Huntington, West Virginia · Midsize suburb · 40 mi to Charleston
- Students
- 51
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $34k
Fred W Eberle Technical Center
Buckhannon, West Virginia · Remote town · 88 mi to Charleston
- Students
- 109
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $43k
Florida Panhandle Technical College
Chipley, Florida · Remote rural · 79 mi to Tallahassee
- Students
- 157
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $32k
Putnam Career and Technical Center
Eleanor, West Virginia · Midsize suburb · 20 mi to Charleston
- Students
- 27
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 8%
- Earnings
- $36k
Wood County Technical Center-Practical Nursing
Parkersburg, West Virginia · Small city · 62 mi to Charleston
- Students
- 31
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $41k
Colleges near Mercer County Technical Education Center
Concord University
Athens, WV · Public · Bachelor's · 1,504 students
Bluefield State University
Bluefield, WV · Public · Bachelor's · 1,042 students
Bluefield University
Bluefield, VA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 614 students
Wytheville Community College
Wytheville, VA · Public · Certificate · 1,255 students
New River Community and Technical College
Beaver, WV · Public · Associate · 770 students
New River Community College
Dublin, VA · Public · Certificate · 1,965 students
West Virginia University Institute of Technology
Beckley, WV · Public · Bachelor's · 981 students
Valley College-Beckley
Beckley, WV · Private nonprofit · Certificate · 165 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.