Public · Community college
Polaris Career Center
Middleburg Heights, Ohio · Large suburb
- 0%
- Transfer rate
- $9,931
- Avg net price
- 77%
- Grad / completion
- $38,718
- Median earnings
Polaris Career Center is a public certificate-granting institution in Middleburg Heights, Ohio (large suburb setting), enrolling 300 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.
About Middleburg Heights, Ohio
Middleburg Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. Middleburg Heights is part of the historic Connecticut Western Reserve, which the State of Connecticut "Reserved" for their own purposes when in 1786 Connecticut relinquished claim to some of its western lands and ceded them to the new Federal Government. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Large suburb
- Highest degree offered
- Certificate
- Nearest big city
- 12 miles to Cleveland, OH
- To Great Lakes shore
- 9 miles
- Nearest airport
- 3 miles to Cleveland Hopkins (CLE) · major hub
How Polaris Career Center compares
Higher than 73% · #50 of 168 in Ohio
Higher than 73%
Higher than 64% · #70 of 157 in Ohio
Cheaper than 70% · #36 cheapest of 155 in Ohio
Lower than 87%
Lower than 73%
Larger than 53%
Percentiles compare Polaris Career 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 Ohio.
Student body
Undergraduates by gender
- Women13043%
- Men17057%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White54%
- Black17%
- Hispanic11%
- Asian4.0%
- Other or multiracial14%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 300
- Student–faculty ratio
- 12 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 44%
- First-generation students
- 58%
- Students over 25
- 41%
- Median family income
- $20,832
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
- $9,931
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
- 77%
- First-year retention
- 85%
- Transferred to another college
- 0%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $38,034
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $38,718
- Median debt at graduation
- $6,365
- Students with federal loans
- 32%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 38%
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%.
Campus safety
- Safety grade
- A
- Reported offenses per 1,000 students
- 0.0 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 0
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 0
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (300 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.
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?
Polaris Career 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)
- $38,718
- Typical debt at graduation
- $6,365
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 16%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 46%
Typical debt would take roughly 1.6 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.
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.
Men out-earn women by $18,417 (55%) 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
- 22°F
- Annual rain
- 41″
- Annual snow
- 63.8″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Cleveland, OH US station (3.7 mi from campus).
What Polaris Career 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 Polaris Career Center
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Polaris Career Center side by side →
Auburn Career Center
Concord Twp, Ohio · Large suburb · 25 mi to Cleveland
- Students
- 292
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $37k
Southern State Community College
Hillsboro, Ohio · Distant town · 47 mi to Dayton
- Students
- 761
- Tuition
- $6k
- Transfer
- 13%
- Earnings
- $35k
Belmont College
St Clairsville, Ohio · Fringe rural · 57 mi to Pittsburgh
- Students
- 600
- Tuition
- $5k
- Transfer
- 4%
- Earnings
- $35k
Zane State College
Zanesville, Ohio · Distant town · 51 mi to Columbus
- Students
- 715
- Tuition
- $6k
- Transfer
- 15%
- Earnings
- $35k
Scioto County Career Technical Center
Lucasville, Ohio · Distant rural · 76 mi to Columbus
- Students
- 175
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $41k
Columbiana County Career and Technical Center
Lisbon, Ohio · Distant rural · 23 mi to Youngstown
- Students
- 144
- Tuition
- —
- Transfer
- 0%
- Earnings
- $34k
Colleges near Polaris Career Center
Baldwin Wallace University
Berea, OH · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 2,842 students
Brown Aveda Institute-Strongsville
Strongsville, OH · Private for-profit · Certificate · 121 students
Bryant & Stratton College-Parma
Parma, OH · Private nonprofit · Associate · 624 students
Valley College-Cleveland
Cleveland, OH · Private nonprofit · Certificate · 887 students
Meryma'at Barber College
Cleveland, OH · Private for-profit · Certificate · 48 students
Raphael's School of Beauty Culture Inc-Brunswick
Brunswick, OH · Private for-profit · Certificate · 73 students
Central School of Practical Nursing
Independence, OH · Private nonprofit · Certificate · 97 students
Allstate Hairstyling & Barber College
Cleveland, OH · Private for-profit · Certificate · 33 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.