Community college pays off

Graduates who earn certificates at community colleges earn an average of nearly $9,000 more than those who go through for-profit training programs, according to new data from the US Department of Education.

“Some institutions are clearly paying off for graduates, offering a high-value degree relative to other institutions,” the report notes. “In particular, programs offered by community colleges outperform comparable for-profit programs.”

Students who attend community colleges not only benefit from higher post-graduate earnings, but they also incur a fraction of the debt borne by their for-profit counterparts.

Another study by the National Center for Education Statistics found that graduates who earned an occupational credential — such as certificates in agriculture, industrial technology, computer science, and other common programs at community colleges — had a higher rate of employment in their fields of study than graduates who received degrees in academic areas like English, liberal arts, mathematics, philosophy, or history.

Sources: US Department of Education, (http://ed.gov/news/press-releases/education-department-releases-new-graduate-earnings-data-career-college-programs); National Center for Education Statistics (http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2016107)