Private for-profit · Community college

Summit Salon Academy

Tacoma, Washington · Midsize city

0%
Transfer rate: $25,471
Avg net price: 59%
Grad / completion: $31,648
Median earnings

Summit Salon Academy is a private for-profit certificate-granting institution in Tacoma, Washington (midsize city setting), enrolling 138 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

Private for-profitSmall · 138 undergradsMidsize cityNear the coast

About Tacoma, Washington

Tacoma is a city in and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. In 1852, Swedish immigrant Nicolas Delin built a water-powered sawmill on a creek near the head of Commencement Bay, but the small settlement that grew around it was abandoned during the Indian War of 1855–56. Tacoma adopted a percent for art ordinance in 1975, allocating one percent of construction costs from major public projects to public art. (Wikipedia)

Setting: Midsize city
Highest degree offered: Certificate
Nearest big city: 27 miles to Seattle, WA
To the ocean: 3 miles
Nearest airport: 6 miles to Tacoma Narrows (TIW)

How Summit Salon Academy compares

Graduation rate59%

Higher than 47% · #18 of 58 in Washington

First-year retention10%

Higher than 1%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$31,648

Higher than 38% · #43 of 51 in Washington

Average net price$25,471

Cheaper than 17% · #50 cheapest of 58 in Washington

Median debt at graduation$9,785

Lower than 50%

Student–faculty ratio13 : 1

Lower than 67%

Undergraduate enrollment138

Larger than 35%

Percentiles compare Summit Salon Academy 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 Washington.

Student body

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

White64%
Black4.3%
Hispanic4.3%
Asian5.1%
Other or multiracial22%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment: 138
Student–faculty ratio: 13 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 43%
First-generation students: 45%
Students over 25: 37%
Median family income: $26,312

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: $25,471

Outcomes

Graduated: 59%
First-year retention: 10%
Transferred to another college: 0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $26,625
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $31,648
Median debt at graduation: $9,785
Students with federal loans: 50%
Paying down their loans (1 year in): 47%

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing: No
Application fee: Free

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

$23,204

$30–48k

$23,696

$48–75k

$25,388

$75–110k

$28,112

$110k+

$29,873

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

$1,000

average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 1% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,000. 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 163 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): $31,648
Typical debt at graduation: $9,785
Debt vs. one year's pay: 31%
Out-earn a HS grad: —

Typical debt would take roughly 3.1 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.

Campus climate

Summer high: 77°F
Winter low: 37°F
Annual rain: 40.8″
Annual snow: 5.6″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Tacoma #1, WA US station (3.3 mi from campus).

What Summit Salon Academy graduates study — and earn

Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services

103 grads$23k 1 yr$29k 5 yr$10k debt

103$22,595$29,174$10,000

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 Summit Salon Academy

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Summit Salon Academy side by side →

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Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
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Tuition: —
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Paul Mitchell the School-Richland

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Tuition: —
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Paul Mitchell the School-Federal Way

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Students: 147
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
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Paul Mitchell the School-Spokane

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Spokane Valley, Washington · Midsize city · 11 mi to Spokane

Students: 296
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
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Aveda Institute Portland-Vancouver Campus

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Vancouver, Washington · Midsize city · 10 mi to Portland

Students: 122
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $33k

Colleges near Summit Salon Academy

University of Washington-Tacoma Campus

Tacoma, WA · Public · Bachelor's · 4,185 students

2 mi

Bates Technical College

Tacoma, WA · Public · Certificate · 1,813 students

2 mi

Northwest College of Art & Design

Tacoma, WA · Private for-profit · Bachelor's · 139 students

3 mi

University of Puget Sound

Tacoma, WA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,594 students

3 mi

Tacoma Community College

Tacoma, WA · Public · Associate · 4,668 students

3 mi

Clover Park Technical College

Lakewood, WA · Public · Certificate · 2,636 students

3 mi

UEI College-Tacoma

Tacoma, WA · Private for-profit · Certificate · 689 students

4 mi

Faith International University

Tacoma, WA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 276 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.