Public · Community college

Moraine Valley Community College

Palos Hills, Illinois · Large suburb

#5 best value in Illinois
19%
Transfer rate
$2,829
Avg net price
40%
Grad / completion
$43,892
Median earnings

Moraine Valley Community College is a public certificate-granting institution in Palos Hills, Illinois (large suburb setting), enrolling 7,490 undergraduates. It is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicMidsize · 7,490 undergradsLarge suburbNJCAA Division IICold wintersSnowy

About Palos Hills, Illinois

Palos Hills is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is a southwest suburb of Chicago. It is named after Palos de la Frontera, Spain, from which Christopher Columbus set sail to North America. Moraine Valley Community College and Amos Alonzo Stagg High School are its main schools. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large suburb
Highest degree offered
Associate
Nearest big city
17 miles to Chicago, IL
To Great Lakes shore
15 miles
Nearest airport
8 miles to Chicago Midway (MDW) · major hub

How Moraine Valley Community College compares

Graduation rate40%

Higher than 25% · #95 of 122 in Illinois

First-year retention75%

Higher than 55%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$43,892

Higher than 81% · #18 of 113 in Illinois

Average net price$2,829

Cheaper than 97% · #5 cheapest of 123 in Illinois

Median debt at graduation$9,500

Lower than 57%

Student–faculty ratio21 : 1

Lower than 23%

Undergraduate enrollment7,490

Larger than 94%

Percentiles compare Moraine Valley 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 Illinois.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

7,490undergrads
  • Women4,23757%
  • Men3,25343%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White44%
  • Black8.5%
  • Hispanic31%
  • Asian3.7%
  • Other or multiracial13%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
7,490
Student–faculty ratio
21 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
28%
First-generation students
49%
Students over 25
17%
Median family income
$24,460
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$81,054

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 1,760 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Illinois99%
  • International1.0%

Most first-years stay in state — Moraine Valley Community College draws overwhelmingly from Illinois.

1% 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
$3,822
Out-of-state tuition
$9,846
Room & board
Books & supplies
$1,632
Total cost of attendance
$13,971
Average net price
$2,829

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
40%
First-year retention
75%
Transferred to another college
19%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$34,943
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$43,892
Median debt at graduation
$9,500
Students with federal loans
3%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
35%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
40%
Low-income (Pell)
17%
First-generation
18%

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
$25
Athletics
NJCAA Division II
Varsity athletes
166 (89 men · 77 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)

Soccer50
Baseball24
Tennis22
Basketball21
Cross Country17
Softball15
Volleyball11
Golf6

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)
9
Property offenses (2022–2024)
3

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 3 campuses (11,296 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.

4.0reported offenses a year
3.0 violent a year1.0 property a year

By offense type, per year

Aggravated assault
1.7
Rape
0.7
Fondling
0.7
Burglary
0.7
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
$2,710
$30–48k
$11,590
$48–75k
$13,971
$75–110k
$110k+
$13,971

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.

9%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$3,912
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 9% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $3,912. 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 1,281 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)
$43,892
Typical debt at graduation
$9,500
Debt vs. one year's pay
22%
Out-earn a HS grad
45%

Typical debt would take roughly 2.2 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
$40,540
Men
$50,780

Men out-earn women by $10,240 (25%) 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
90°F
Winter low
15°F
Annual rain
41.4″
Annual snow
38.8″

Average temperature

HighLow
10°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.55.0JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Little Red School Hse, IL US station (2.3 mi from campus).

What Moraine Valley 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 Moraine Valley Community College

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

Colleges near Moraine Valley Community 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.