Public · Community college

South Louisiana Community College

Lafayette, Louisiana · Midsize city

17%
Transfer rate: $12,564
Avg net price: 30%
Grad / completion: $31,432
Median earnings

South Louisiana Community College is a public certificate-granting institution in Lafayette, Louisiana (midsize city setting), enrolling 5,035 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicMidsize · 5,035 undergradsMidsize city

About Lafayette, Louisiana

Lafayette is a city in Louisiana and the parish seat of Lafayette Parish. French colonists founded the first European settlement, Petit Manchac, a trading post along the Vermilion River. The Lafayette metropolitan area has a large Louisiana Creole, Cajun, and substantial foreign-born population; an estimated 14,676 Lafayettiens were foreign-born residents in 2019. Additionally, more than 36% of foreigners came from Asia from 2014 to 2019. (Wikipedia)

Setting: Midsize city
Highest degree offered: Associate
Nearest big city: 2 miles to Lafayette, LA
To the ocean: 27 miles
Nearest airport: 4 miles to Lafayette (LFT)

How South Louisiana Community College compares

Graduation rate30%

Higher than 13% · #61 of 73 in Louisiana

First-year retention54%

Higher than 14%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$31,432

Higher than 37% · #22 of 61 in Louisiana

Average net price$12,564

Cheaper than 60% · #26 cheapest of 71 in Louisiana

Median debt at graduation$11,000

Lower than 36%

Student–faculty ratio21 : 1

Lower than 23%

Undergraduate enrollment5,035

Larger than 91%

Percentiles compare South Louisiana 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 Louisiana.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

Women2,99559%
Men2,04041%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

White45%
Black43%
Hispanic4.7%
Asian1.6%
Other or multiracial6.1%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment: 5,035
Student–faculty ratio: 21 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 50%
First-generation students: 52%
Students over 25: 33%
Median family income: $19,779
Avg faculty salary (academic year): $48,519
Endowment: $2,520,000

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 1,147 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

From Louisiana98%
Other U.S. states1.3%
International0.8%

Most first-years stay in state — South Louisiana Community College draws overwhelmingly from Louisiana.

1% came from outside the U.S. 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: $4,210
Room & board: —
Books & supplies: $1,354
Total cost of attendance: $19,044
Average net price: $12,564

Outcomes

Graduated: 30%
First-year retention: 54%
Transferred to another college: 17%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $29,580
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $31,432
Median debt at graduation: $11,000
Students with federal loans: 36%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students

30%

Low-income (Pell)

23%

First-generation

23%

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

$11,793

$30–48k

$11,823

$48–75k

$14,266

$75–110k

$17,106

$110k+

$17,696

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.

of first-years get a grant from the school

$1,998

average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 2% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,998. 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 852 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): $31,432
Typical debt at graduation: $11,000
Debt vs. one year's pay: 35%
Out-earn a HS grad: 39%

Typical debt would take roughly 3.5 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

$26,987

Men

$40,534

Men out-earn women by $13,547 (50%) 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: 92°F
Winter low: 41°F
Annual rain: 64.7″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Lafayette, LA US station (0.8 mi from campus).

What South Louisiana Community College graduates study — and earn

Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesCert.

344 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

344———Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment ProfessionsCert.

250 grads$62k 1 yr— 5 yr$9k debt

250$62,184—$9,363 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and HumanitiesAssoc.

238 grads$22k 1 yr$34k 5 yr$18k debt

238$21,569$34,467$18,278 Business/Commerce, GeneralAssoc.

137 grads$25k 1 yr— 5 yr$13k debt

137$25,179—$13,446 Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing AssistantsCert.

121 grads$40k 1 yr$43k 5 yr$20k debt

121$40,153$43,025$20,214 Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/TechniciansCert.

101 grads$35k 1 yr— 5 yr$6k debt

101$35,177—$5,500 Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing AssistantsAssoc.

82 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

82———Electrical and Power Transmission InstallersCert.

63 grads$39k 1 yr— 5 yr$7k debt

63$38,994—$7,409 Precision Metal WorkingCert.

63 grads$25k 1 yr$42k 5 yr$6k debt

63$25,471$41,830$6,125 Allied Health and Medical Assisting ServicesCert.

50 grads$22k 1 yr$27k 5 yr$10k debt

50$22,058$27,307$9,500 Nuclear and Industrial Radiologic Technologies/TechniciansCert.

47 grads$40k 1 yr— 5 yr$9k debt

47$40,042—$9,000 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment ProfessionsAssoc.

47 grads$66k 1 yr— 5 yr$16k debt

47$66,452—$15,950

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 South Louisiana Community College

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

Bossier Parish Community College

Public

Bossier City, Louisiana · Small city · 6 mi to Shreveport

Students: 4,935
Tuition: $4k
Transfer: 19%
Earnings: $35k

Northshore Technical Community College

Public

Lacombe, Louisiana · Fringe rural · 31 mi to New Orleans

Students: 2,505
Tuition: $4k
Transfer: 7%
Earnings: $30k

Baton Rouge Community College

Public

Baton Rouge, Louisiana · Midsize city · 3 mi to Baton Rouge

Students: 8,362
Tuition: $4k
Transfer: 9%
Earnings: $35k

Fletcher Technical Community College

Public

Schriever, Louisiana · Fringe rural · 48 mi to New Orleans

Students: 2,136
Tuition: $4k
Transfer: 9%
Earnings: $32k

Delgado Community College

Public

New Orleans, Louisiana · Large city · 3 mi to New Orleans

Students: 11,668
Tuition: $4k
Transfer: 14%
Earnings: $33k

Louisiana Delta Community College

Public

Monroe, Louisiana · Small city · 100 mi to Shreveport

Students: 3,057
Tuition: $4k
Transfer: 12%
Earnings: $30k

Colleges near South Louisiana Community College

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< 1 mi

Aveda Arts & Sciences Institute-Lafayette

Lafayette, LA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 144 students

1 mi

University of Louisiana at Lafayette

Lafayette, LA · Public · Bachelor's · 12,428 students

2 mi

Unitech Training Academy-Lafayette

Lafayette, LA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 229 students

3 mi

Cosmetology Training Center

Lafayette, LA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 125 students

3 mi

Blue Cliff College-Lafayette

Lafayette, LA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 62 students

3 mi

Remington College-Lafayette Campus

Lafayette, LA · Private nonprofit · Certificate · 230 students

4 mi

Infinity College

Lafayette, LA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 179 students

4 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.