Private for-profit · Community college

Northwest College-Clackamas

Happy Valley, Oregon · Large suburb

0%
Transfer rate
$18,488
Avg net price
61%
Grad / completion
$24,421
Median earnings

Northwest College-Clackamas is a private for-profit certificate-granting institution in Happy Valley, Oregon (large suburb setting), enrolling 35 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

Private for-profitSmall · 35 undergradsLarge suburb

About Happy Valley, Oregon

Happy Valley is a suburban city in the Portland metropolitan area. Happy Valley was originally settled by Christian and Matilda Deardorff after receiving 640 acres from The Donation Land Claim Act of 1850 in Clackamas County between a cinder cone volcano later name Mt. Scott and a knoll later named Scouters' Mountain. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large suburb
Highest degree offered
Certificate
Nearest big city
7 miles to Portland, OR
To the ocean
58 miles
Nearest airport
10 miles to Portland (PDX) · major hub

How Northwest College-Clackamas compares

Graduation rate61%

Higher than 51% · #18 of 37 in Oregon

First-year retention60%

Higher than 23%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$24,421

Higher than 16% · #23 of 33 in Oregon

Average net price$18,488

Cheaper than 38% · #27 cheapest of 35 in Oregon

Median debt at graduation$7,564

Lower than 79%

Student–faculty ratio7 : 1

Lower than 92%

Undergraduate enrollment35

Larger than 8%

Percentiles compare Northwest College-Clackamas 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 Oregon.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

35undergrads
  • Women3189%
  • Men411%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White46%
  • Black5.7%
  • Hispanic29%
  • Asian5.7%
  • Other or multiracial14%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
35
Student–faculty ratio
7 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
60%
First-generation students
50%
Students over 25
29%
Median family income
$17,784

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

Cost

In-state tuition
Room & board
Total cost of attendance
Average net price
$18,488

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
61%
First-year retention
60%
Transferred to another college
0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$23,914
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$24,421
Median debt at graduation
$7,564
Students with federal loans
59%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
25%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
61%
Low-income (Pell)
62%
First-generation
63%

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
$100

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.

< $30k
$18,488
$30–48k
$48–75k
$75–110k
$110k+

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?

Northwest College-Clackamas 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)
$24,421
Typical debt at graduation
$7,564
Debt vs. one year's pay
31%
Out-earn a HS grad
24%

Typical debt would take roughly 3.1 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
$25,050
Men
$12,899

Women out-earn men by $12,151 (94%) 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
84°F
Winter low
36°F
Annual rain
44.8″
Annual snow
3.6″

Average temperature

HighLow
30°60°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.03.67.2JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Oregon City, OR US station (5.9 mi from campus).

What Northwest College-Clackamas 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 Northwest College-Clackamas

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

Colleges near Northwest College-Clackamas

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.