Public · Community college

Sampson Community College

Clinton, North Carolina · Distant town

10%
Transfer rate: $3,108
Avg net price: 56%
Grad / completion: $33,409
Median earnings

Sampson Community College is a public certificate-granting institution in Clinton, North Carolina (distant town setting), enrolling 846 undergraduates. It is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicSmall · 846 undergradsDistant townCold winters

About Clinton, North Carolina

Clinton is a city in and the county seat of Sampson County, North Carolina, United States. The first settlers came to the Clinton area around 1740. The community was originally known as Clinton Courthouse. In 1852, the General Assembly passed several acts to improve regulation of towns, including Clinton. (Wikipedia)

Setting: Distant town
Highest degree offered: Associate
Nearest big city: 57 miles to Raleigh, NC
To the ocean: 55 miles
Nearest airport: 29 miles to Fayetteville Regional Airport - Grannis Field (FAY)

How Sampson Community College compares

Graduation rate56%

Higher than 44% · #26 of 90 in North Carolina

First-year retention66%

Higher than 35%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$33,409

Higher than 44% · #42 of 84 in North Carolina

Average net price$3,108

Cheaper than 96% · #15 cheapest of 90 in North Carolina

Student–faculty ratio8 : 1

Lower than 89%

Undergraduate enrollment846

Larger than 71%

Percentiles compare Sampson Community 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 North Carolina.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

Women58169%
Men26531%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

White35%
Black25%
Hispanic31%
Other or multiracial8.9%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment: 846
Student–faculty ratio: 8 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 53%
First-generation students: 53%
Students over 25: 21%
Median family income: $16,025
Avg faculty salary (academic year): $51,777

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

Cost

In-state tuition: $2,877
Out-of-state tuition: $9,789
Room & board: —
Books & supplies: $3,864
Total cost of attendance: $13,142
Average net price: $3,108

Outcomes

Graduated: 56%
First-year retention: 66%
Transferred to another college: 10%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $27,894
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $33,409
Median debt at graduation: —
Students with federal loans: 0%

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing: No
Application fee: Free

Campus safety

Safety grade: A
Reported offenses per 1,000 students: 0.2 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024): 0
Property offenses (2022–2024): 1

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

Motor vehicle theft

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

$2,063

$30–48k

$4,462

$48–75k

$3,184

$75–110k

$7,874

$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?

Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.

18%

of first-years get a grant from the school

$1,309

average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 18% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,309. 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 114 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): $33,409
Typical debt at graduation: —
Debt vs. one year's pay: —
Out-earn a HS grad: 35%

Weigh it value

The payoff is less clear-cut here — weigh the debt against the earnings and your intended field before borrowing heavily.

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

$28,890

Men

$38,898

Men out-earn women by $10,008 (35%) 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: 32°F
Annual rain: 51″
Annual snow: 1.8″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Clinton 2 NE, NC US station (5.3 mi from campus).

What Sampson Community College graduates study — and earn

Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesAssoc.

122 grads$28k 1 yr$37k 5 yr— debt

122$28,489$37,055—Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical NursingAssoc.

35 grads$69k 1 yr$72k 5 yr$13k debt

35$69,040$71,874$12,596 Business Administration, Management and OperationsAssoc.

28 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

28———Business Administration, Management and OperationsCert.

26 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

26———Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing AssistantsCert.

25 grads$40k 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

25$40,257——Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and MethodsCert.

23 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

23———Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and ServicesCert.

20 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

20———Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming ServicesAssoc.

19 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

19———Criminal Justice and CorrectionsCert.

16 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

16———Precision Metal WorkingCert.

15 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

15———Computer and Information Sciences, GeneralCert.

12 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

12———Computer and Information Sciences, GeneralAssoc.

12 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

12———

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 Sampson Community College

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

Wilson Community College

Public

Wilson, North Carolina · Fringe town · 42 mi to Raleigh

Students: 1,373
Tuition: $3k
Transfer: 21%
Earnings: $33k

Vance-Granville Community College

Public

Henderson, North Carolina · Distant town · 32 mi to Durham

Students: 1,665
Tuition: $2k
Transfer: 13%
Earnings: $34k

Nash Community College

Public

Rocky Mount, North Carolina · Fringe rural · 44 mi to Raleigh

Students: 1,689
Tuition: $3k
Transfer: 28%
Earnings: $35k

Lenoir Community College

Public

Kinston, North Carolina · Distant town · 71 mi to Raleigh

Students: 1,469
Tuition: $3k
Transfer: 22%
Earnings: $34k

Rockingham Community College

Public

Wentworth, North Carolina · Fringe rural · 22 mi to Greensboro

Students: 1,065
Tuition: $2k
Transfer: 13%
Earnings: $32k

Craven Community College

Public

New Bern, North Carolina · Distant town · 78 mi to Wilmington

Students: 1,989
Tuition: $2k
Transfer: 13%
Earnings: $34k

Colleges near Sampson Community College

James Sprunt Community College

Kenansville, NC · Public · Certificate · 799 students

22 mi

University of Mount Olive

Mount Olive, NC · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,796 students

22 mi

Fayetteville State University

Fayetteville, NC · Public · Bachelor's · 5,762 students

31 mi

Miller-Motte College-Fayetteville

Fayetteville, NC · Private for-profit · Certificate · 336 students

31 mi

Methodist University

Fayetteville, NC · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,448 students

31 mi

Bladen Community College

Dublin, NC · Public · Associate · 1,030 students

32 mi

Fayetteville Technical Community College

Fayetteville, NC · Public · Certificate · 9,471 students

33 mi

Carolina College of Biblical Studies

Fayetteville, NC · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 159 students

33 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.