Private nonprofit · Community college

Valley Grande Institute for Academic Studies

Weslaco, Texas · Large suburb

0%
Transfer rate: $12,051
Avg net price: 80%
Grad / completion: $33,472
Median earnings

Valley Grande Institute for Academic Studies is a private nonprofit certificate-granting institution in Weslaco, Texas (large suburb setting), enrolling 84 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

Private nonprofitSmall · 84 undergradsLarge suburbMild winters

About Weslaco, Texas

Weslaco is a city in Hidalgo County, Texas, United States. Following the ratification of the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1994, cross-border cargo and vehicular traffic in the county increased 345% and 36.4% respectively since the beginning of the 1990s, from 228,133 to 1,015,554 cargo trucks in 2008 and from 10.92 million to 14.9 million automobiles. (Wikipedia)

Setting: Large suburb
Highest degree offered: Certificate
Nearest big city: 15 miles to McAllen, TX
To the ocean: 38 miles
Nearest airport: 15 miles to McAllen Miller (MFE)

How Valley Grande Institute for Academic Studies compares

Graduation rate80%

Higher than 77% · #57 of 253 in Texas

First-year retention40%

Higher than 6%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$33,472

Higher than 44% · #99 of 206 in Texas

Average net price$12,051

Cheaper than 62% · #77 cheapest of 252 in Texas

Median debt at graduation$9,500

Lower than 57%

Student–faculty ratio11 : 1

Lower than 78%

Undergraduate enrollment84

Larger than 24%

Percentiles compare Valley Grande Institute for Academic Studies 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 Texas.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

Women7083%
Men1417%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

Hispanic95%
Other or multiracial4.8%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment: 84
Student–faculty ratio: 11 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 95%
First-generation students: 64%
Students over 25: 57%
Median family income: $15,130

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: $12,051

Outcomes

Graduated: 80%
First-year retention: 40%
Transferred to another college: 0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $30,701
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $33,472
Median debt at graduation: $9,500
Students with federal loans: 95%
Paying down their loans (1 year in): 20%

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing: No
Application fee: $100

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

$12,079

$30–48k

$12,415

$48–75k

$8,680

$75–110k

—

$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?

Valley Grande Institute for Academic Studies funds essentially no grants of its own — almost all aid here comes from federal (Pell), state, or outside sources rather than the school's own discount. Its sticker price is what it is.

Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid, 2022–23 full-time first-year undergraduates.

Is it worth it?

A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.

Median earnings (10 years): $33,472
Typical debt at graduation: $9,500
Debt vs. one year's pay: 28%
Out-earn a HS grad: 49%

Typical debt would take roughly 2.8 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

$30,710

Men

$44,189

Men out-earn women by $13,479 (44%) 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: 97°F
Winter low: 50°F
Annual rain: 25.7″
Annual snow: 0.1″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Weslaco, TX US station (1.8 mi from campus).

What Valley Grande Institute for Academic Studies graduates study — and earn

Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants

59 grads$31k 1 yr$37k 5 yr$10k debt

59$30,574$37,212$10,050 Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services

16 grads$17k 1 yr— 5 yr$10k debt

16$16,540—$9,500 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions

9 grads$19k 1 yr$26k 5 yr$10k debt

9$19,302$25,905$9,500 Health and Medical Administrative Services

5 grads$12k 1 yr$26k 5 yr$7k debt

5$11,744$25,675$7,019

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 Valley Grande Institute for Academic Studies

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Valley Grande Institute for Academic Studies side by side →

CET-El Paso

Private

El Paso, Texas · Large city · 11 mi to El Paso

Students: 67
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $33k

Southwestern Christian College

Private

Terrell, Texas · Distant town · 30 mi to Dallas

Students: 110
Tuition: $15k
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $33k

Remington College-Houston Southeast Campus

Private

League City, Texas · Large suburb · 23 mi to Houston

Students: 111
Tuition: $17k
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $31k

CET-Oxnard

Private

Oxnard, California · Midsize city · 33 mi to Santa Barbara

Students: 95
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $33k

Remington College-Fort Worth Campus

Private

North Richland Hills, Texas · Large suburb · 8 mi to Fort Worth

Students: 154
Tuition: $16k
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $31k

Jacksonville College-Main Campus

Private

Jacksonville, Texas · Distant town · 97 mi to Shreveport

Students: 157
Tuition: $9k
Transfer: 30%
Earnings: $39k

Colleges near Valley Grande Institute for Academic Studies

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2 mi

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Weslaco, TX · Private for-profit · Certificate · 91 students

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South Texas Training Center

Pharr, TX · Private for-profit · Certificate · 120 students

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Rio Grande Valley College

Pharr, TX · Private for-profit · Certificate · 808 students

13 mi

Southern Careers Institute-Pharr

Pharr, TX · Private for-profit · Certificate · 596 students

14 mi

McAllen Careers Institute

McAllen, TX · Private for-profit · Certificate · 129 students

15 mi

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

Edinburg, TX · Public · Bachelor's · 28,666 students

15 mi

Vogue College of Cosmetology-McAllen

McAllen, TX · Private for-profit · Certificate · 344 students

15 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.