Private for-profit · Community college
Porter & Chester Institute
Bridgeport, Connecticut · Midsize city
- 0%
- Transfer rate
- $18,348
- Avg net price
- 45%
- Grad / completion
- $41,588
- Median earnings
Porter & Chester Institute is a private for-profit certificate-granting institution in Bridgeport, Connecticut (midsize city setting), enrolling 1,373 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.
About Bridgeport, Connecticut
Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. The earliest European communal settlement was in the historical Stratfield district, along US Route 1, known in colonial times as the King's Highway. Close by, Mount Grove Cemetery was laid out on what was a native village that extended past the 1650s. A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, written 1889, a classic novel by Mark Twain, contains the line "Bridgeport?" Said I." "Camelot", said he." when a man from Hartford, who does not yet know his has been transported to early medieval times, arrives with his escort to Camelot, confusing it for Bridgeport. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Midsize city
- Highest degree offered
- Certificate
- Nearest big city
- 15 miles to New Haven, CT
- To the ocean
- 2 miles
- Nearest airport
- 16 miles to Tweed New Haven (HVN)
How Porter & Chester Institute compares
Higher than 32% · #21 of 23 in Connecticut
Higher than 10%
Higher than 75% · #6 of 13 in Connecticut
Cheaper than 38% · #12 cheapest of 23 in Connecticut
Lower than 29%
Lower than 56%
Larger than 77%
Percentiles compare Porter & Chester Institute 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 Connecticut.
Student body
Undergraduates by gender
- Women51037%
- Men86363%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White21%
- Black31%
- Hispanic29%
- Asian2.0%
- Other or multiracial16%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 1,373
- Student–faculty ratio
- 15 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 57%
- First-generation students
- 54%
- Students over 25
- 48%
- Median family income
- $18,938
Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.
Cost
- In-state tuition
- $14,349
- Room & board
- —
- Books & supplies
- $2,040
- Total cost of attendance
- $25,892
- Average net price
- $18,348
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
- 45%
- First-year retention
- 49%
- Transferred to another college
- 0%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $37,807
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $41,588
- Median debt at graduation
- $12,000
- Students with federal loans
- 60%
- Paying down their loans (1 year in)
- 34%
Graduating on time
By student background (4 years)
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
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 6 campuses (1,373 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?
Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.
Modest institutional aid: 91% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,538. 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 362 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)
- $41,588
- Typical debt at graduation
- $12,000
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- 29%
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 57%
Typical debt would take roughly 2.9 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 $18,396 (57%) 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
- 83°F
- Winter low
- 24°F
- Annual rain
- 44.1″
- Annual snow
- 33.6″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Bridgeport Sikorsky Mem AP, CT US station (4.2 mi from campus).
What Porter & Chester Institute 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 Porter & Chester Institute
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Porter & Chester Institute side by side →
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Porter & Chester Institute of Hamden
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Colleges near Porter & Chester Institute
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Branford Academy of Hair & Cosmetology-Bridgeport
Bridgeport, CT · Private for-profit · Certificate · 32 students
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American Institute of Healthcare & Technology
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Sacred Heart University
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Fairfield University
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University of New Haven
West Haven, CT · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 4,841 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.