Public · Community college

Pierpont Community and Technical College

Fairmont, West Virginia · Distant town

8%
Transfer rate: $8,325
Avg net price: 42%
Grad / completion: $35,132
Median earnings

Pierpont Community and Technical College is a public associate-granting institution in Fairmont, West Virginia (distant town setting), enrolling 959 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicSmall · 959 undergradsDistant townCold winters

About Fairmont, West Virginia

Fairmont is a city in Marion County, West Virginia, United States, and its county seat. In the late 18th century, various subsistence farming settlements were established in the vicinity of the future Fairmont. Fairmont is home to Country Club Bakery, which is where the pepperoni roll snack originates. The bakery continues to serve the roll along with their various other baked goods. Fairmont has considered itself to be the "pepperoni roll capital of the world". (Wikipedia)

Setting: Distant town
Highest degree offered: Associate
Nearest big city: 70 miles to Pittsburgh, PA
To Great Lakes shore: 164 miles
Nearest airport: 10 miles to North Central West Virginia (CKB)

How Pierpont Community and Technical College compares

Graduation rate42%

Higher than 28% · #32 of 42 in West Virginia

First-year retention59%

Higher than 21%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$35,132

Higher than 50% · #17 of 40 in West Virginia

Average net price$8,325

Cheaper than 77% · #22 cheapest of 42 in West Virginia

Median debt at graduation$12,110

Lower than 27%

Student–faculty ratio21 : 1

Lower than 23%

Undergraduate enrollment959

Larger than 72%

Percentiles compare Pierpont Community and Technical 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 West Virginia.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

Women54557%
Men41443%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

White88%
Black4.1%
Hispanic0.6%
Asian0.8%
Other or multiracial6.8%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment: 959
Student–faculty ratio: 21 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 22%
First-generation students: 48%
Students over 25: 15%
Median family income: $27,031
Avg faculty salary (academic year): $61,092
Endowment: $1,269,722

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 306 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

From West Virginia99%
Other U.S. states1.0%

Most first-years stay in state — Pierpont Community and Technical College 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: $5,762
Out-of-state tuition: $13,660
Room & board: —
Books & supplies: $1,173
Total cost of attendance: $14,707
Average net price: $8,325

Outcomes

Graduated: 42%
First-year retention: 59%
Transferred to another college: 8%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $31,618
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $35,132
Median debt at graduation: $12,110
Students with federal loans: 14%
Paying down their loans (1 year in): 24%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students

42%

Low-income (Pell)

25%

First-generation

29%

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

$7,780

$30–48k

$6,956

$48–75k

$9,360

$75–110k

$13,453

$110k+

$14,707

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

$967

average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 19% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $967. 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 231 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): $35,132
Typical debt at graduation: $12,110
Debt vs. one year's pay: 34%
Out-earn a HS grad: 46%

Typical debt would take roughly 3.4 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

$32,216

Men

$40,745

Men out-earn women by $8,529 (26%) 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: 24°F
Annual rain: 47.8″
Annual snow: 25.5″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Fairmont, WV US station (3.5 mi from campus).

What Pierpont Community and Technical College graduates study — and earn

Engineering/Engineering-Related Technologies/Technicians, OtherCert.

286 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

286———Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesAssoc.

146 grads— 1 yr$35k 5 yr$18k debt

146—$35,489$18,366 Culinary Arts and Related ServicesCert.

32 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

32———Allied Health and Medical Assisting ServicesAssoc.

32 grads$32k 1 yr$51k 5 yr$19k debt

32$32,291$51,476$18,500 Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/TechniciansCert.

29 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

29———Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/TechniciansAssoc.

26 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

26———Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied ProfessionsCert.

25 grads— 1 yr$33k 5 yr— debt

25—$33,434—Health and Medical Administrative ServicesCert.

22 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

22———Business/Commerce, GeneralCert.

20 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

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

19 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

19———Computer Systems Networking and TelecommunicationsAssoc.

15 grads$34k 1 yr$59k 5 yr$12k debt

15$33,590$59,345$12,000 Engineering/Engineering-Related Technologies/Technicians, OtherAssoc.

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 Pierpont Community and Technical College

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

Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College

Public

Logan, West Virginia · Distant town · 40 mi to Charleston

Students: 1,064
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 6%
Earnings: $32k

Mountwest Community and Technical College

Public

Huntington, West Virginia · Midsize suburb · 45 mi to Charleston

Students: 1,160
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 6%
Earnings: $29k

West Virginia Northern Community College

Public

Wheeling, West Virginia · Small city · 46 mi to Pittsburgh

Students: 1,014
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 13%
Earnings: $30k

BridgeValley Community & Technical College

Public

South Charleston, West Virginia · Midsize suburb · 4 mi to Charleston

Students: 1,854
Tuition: $6k
Transfer: 13%
Earnings: $36k

Arkansas State University-Mountain Home

Public

Mountain Home, Arkansas · Remote town · 79 mi to Springfield

Students: 925
Tuition: $3k
Transfer: 8%
Earnings: $34k

Blue Ridge Community and Technical College

Public

Martinsburg, West Virginia · Fringe rural · 63 mi to Washington

Students: 1,661
Tuition: $5k
Transfer: 13%
Earnings: $39k

Colleges near Pierpont Community and Technical College

Fairmont State University

Fairmont, WV · Public · Bachelor's · 2,590 students

4 mi

United Technical Center

Clarksburg, WV · Public · Certificate · 10 students

12 mi

Clarksburg Beauty Academy and School of Massage Therapy

Clarksburg, WV · Private for-profit · Certificate · 47 students

13 mi

Monongalia County Technical Education Center

Morgantown, WV · Public · Certificate · 43 students

18 mi

Morgantown Beauty College Inc

Morgantown, WV · Private for-profit · Certificate · 68 students

19 mi

West Virginia Junior College-Morgantown

Morgantown, WV · Private for-profit · Associate · 673 students

19 mi

West Virginia University

Morgantown, WV · Public · Bachelor's · 17,385 students

19 mi

Ross College-Morgantown

Morgantown, WV · Private for-profit · Certificate · 30 students

20 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.