Public · Community college

Tompkins Cortland Community College

Dryden, New York · Distant rural

18%
Transfer rate
$12,723
Avg net price
26%
Grad / completion
$40,707
Median earnings

Tompkins Cortland Community College is a public associate-granting institution in Dryden, New York (distant rural setting), enrolling 1,469 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicSmall · 1,469 undergradsDistant ruralNJCAA Division IIICold wintersSnowy

About Dryden, New York

Dryden is a town in Tompkins County, New York, United States. Robert Harpur, a Clerk in the office of the New York State Surveyor General who named numerous New York townships in 1790 based on his own classical studies, named Dryden for John Dryden (1631–1700), the English poet and a translator of the classics (including the works of Virgil, with the town of Virgil being the next town east of Dryden). (Wikipedia)

Setting
Distant rural
Highest degree offered
Associate
Nearest big city
38 miles to Syracuse, NY
To Great Lakes shore
62 miles
Nearest airport
9 miles to Ithaca Tompkins (ITH)

How Tompkins Cortland Community College compares

Graduation rate26%

Higher than 8% · #164 of 185 in New York

First-year retention50%

Higher than 10%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$40,707

Higher than 71% · #79 of 148 in New York

Average net price$12,723

Cheaper than 59% · #58 cheapest of 175 in New York

Median debt at graduation$15,750

Lower than 13%

Student–faculty ratio12 : 1

Lower than 73%

Undergraduate enrollment1,469

Larger than 78%

Percentiles compare Tompkins Cortland 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 New York.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

1,469undergrads
  • Women79354%
  • Men67646%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White61%
  • Black8.6%
  • Hispanic12%
  • Asian2.5%
  • Other or multiracial16%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
1,469
Student–faculty ratio
12 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
17%
First-generation students
40%
Students over 25
13%
Median family income
$26,771
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$73,890
Endowment
$25,571,624

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 453 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From New York94%
  • Other U.S. states4.2%
  • International1.8%

Most first-years stay in state — Tompkins Cortland Community College draws overwhelmingly from New York.

2% 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
$6,970
Out-of-state tuition
$12,855
Room & board
$11,626
Books & supplies
$1,442
Total cost of attendance
$20,222
Average net price
$12,723

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
26%
First-year retention
50%
Transferred to another college
18%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$33,296
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$40,707
Median debt at graduation
$15,750
Students with federal loans
13%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
33%

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
26%
Low-income (Pell)
16%
First-generation
16%

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
Yes
Dorm capacity
436
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
30%
Housing charge (year)
$8,772
Meal plan (year)
$2,758
Application fee
Free
Athletics
NJCAA Division III
Varsity athletes
131 (100 men · 31 women)

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%.

Varsity sports (6)

Soccer39
Baseball33
Basketball28
Lacrosse17
Softball9
Golf5

Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.

Campus safety

Safety grade
B
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
0.7 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
8
Property offenses (2022–2024)
2

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (4,958 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.

Reported offenses in an average year

The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.

3.3reported offenses a year
2.7 violent a year0.7 property a year

By offense type, per year

Rape
1.7
Fondling
0.7
Burglary
0.7
Robbery
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
$9,861
$30–48k
$11,117
$48–75k
$14,629
$75–110k
$16,591
$110k+
$19,857

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.

26%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$1,830
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 26% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $1,830. 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 374 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)
$40,707
Typical debt at graduation
$15,750
Debt vs. one year's pay
39%
Out-earn a HS grad
43%

Typical debt would take roughly 3.9 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
$37,764
Men
$44,707

Men out-earn women by $6,943 (18%) 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
79°F
Winter low
12°F
Annual rain
39.5″
Annual snow
64.4″

Average temperature

HighLow
0°50°90°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.14.2JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Freeville 1 NE, NY US station (2.5 mi from campus).

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.

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Colleges near Tompkins Cortland Community College

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.