Is Laurel Ridge Community College Worth It?

Laurel Ridge Community College keeps costs low and debt lower, and that combination carries most of its financial value. You'll pay under $6,000 a year on average and leave with a median debt of $9,750, which is small enough that even a modest paycheck covers it. The catch is the median earnings figure of $41,000 ten years out, which means the payoff depends heavily on what you study.

Nursing is the clear winner here. The associate nursing program pays more than any other path at the school, and even after carrying the highest program debt on the list, the salary makes that debt easy to clear. Allied health certificate holders earn less but borrow far less, so the ratio still works in your favor. Computer and information sciences lands in the middle at around $36,000. The weaker end is biological and physical sciences and health and medical administrative services, both under $30,000. Those associate degrees on their own don't move you much past what the median earner makes, and the biology track usually functions as a transfer step toward a four-year degree, not a job.

The main risk is the 38.8% graduation rate. Nearly six in ten students don't finish, and if you borrow and leave without a credential, the low debt stops being a cushion. Enroll only if you have a plan to complete.

The net price tiers stay flat until you cross $75,000 in family income, then jump to over $11,000 for families above $110,000. If your family earns under $48,000, you pay under $5,000 a year. This school fits you if you want nursing or allied health locally and can finish. Look elsewhere if you want a four-year degree from the start.