Public · Community college

Palm Beach State College

Lake Worth, Florida · Large suburb

19%
Transfer rate
$9,182
Avg net price
41%
Grad / completion
$41,923
Median earnings

Palm Beach State College is a public associate-granting institution in Lake Worth, Florida (large suburb setting), enrolling 21,956 undergraduates. It is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicLarge · 21,956 undergradsLarge suburbOtherMild wintersNear the coast

About Lake Worth, Florida

Lake Worth Beach, previously named Lake Worth, is a city in east-central Palm Beach County, Florida, United States, located approximately 63 miles (101 km) north of Miami. While evidence near the town of Jupiter indicates local inhabitation dating back to the Paleo-Indian period, the Jaega were the first known tribe to have resided along the Florida Atlantic coast in the areas of Martin and Palm Beach counties. The Cultural Council for Palm Beach County, founded by Alexander W. Dreyfoos Jr. as the Palm Beach County Council of the Arts in West Palm Beach in 1978, evolved into the official county government agency to support and promote local arts and culture. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Large suburb
Highest degree offered
Bachelor's
To the ocean
3 miles
Nearest airport
5 miles to President Donald J. Trump (PBI) · major hub

How Palm Beach State College compares

Graduation rate41%

Higher than 27% · #182 of 211 in Florida

Earnings, 10 years after entry$41,923

Higher than 76% · #22 of 171 in Florida

Average net price$9,182

Cheaper than 74% · #47 cheapest of 207 in Florida

Median debt at graduation$7,081

Lower than 82%

Student–faculty ratio31 : 1

Lower than 4%

Undergraduate enrollment21,956

Larger than 99%

Percentiles compare Palm Beach State 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 Florida.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

21,956undergrads
  • Women13,00059%
  • Men8,95641%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White22%
  • Black31%
  • Hispanic36%
  • Asian2.1%
  • Other or multiracial9.5%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
21,956
Student–faculty ratio
31 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
38%
First-generation students
49%
Students over 25
29%
Median family income
$21,408
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$63,135
Endowment
$22,628,141

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 4,784 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From Florida99%
  • Other U.S. states0.8%

Most first-years stay in state — Palm Beach State College draws overwhelmingly from Florida.

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
$3,050
Out-of-state tuition
$10,910
Room & board
Books & supplies
$2,700
Total cost of attendance
$16,830
Average net price
$9,182

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
41%
First-year retention
Transferred to another college
19%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$33,729
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$41,923
Median debt at graduation
$7,081
Students with federal loans
11%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
33%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
41%
Low-income (Pell)
33%
First-generation
33%

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
$40
Athletics
Other
Varsity athletes
88 (40 men · 48 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 (5)

Basketball27
Baseball25
Volleyball15
Beach Volleyball14
Golf7

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)
1

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 5 campuses (25,916 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.

0.3reported offenses a year
0 violent a year0.3 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary
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
$8,131
$30–48k
$8,675
$48–75k
$10,862
$75–110k
$13,902
$110k+
$12,013

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.

26%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$1,147
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 26% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,147. 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 2,352 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)
$41,923
Typical debt at graduation
$7,081
Debt vs. one year's pay
17%
Out-earn a HS grad
48%

Typical debt would take roughly 1.7 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
$39,073
Men
$45,900

Men out-earn women by $6,827 (17%) 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
58°F
Annual rain
61.8″

Average temperature

HighLow
50°80°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.04.38.7JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, West Palm Beach Intl AP, FL US station (5 mi from campus).

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 Palm Beach State College

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Palm Beach State College side by side →

Colleges near Palm Beach State 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.