Community CollegePublic

Central Piedmont Community College

Charlotte, North Carolina·Public, 2-year·Southeast·cpcc.edu
6-yr Graduation
31%
Total enrollment
20,375
peer median 3,509
Avg net price
$3,660
-$2.7k vs Community College
Use this data
Ask Clema

Graduation rate & outcomes

Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.

Overall completion
31%
Full-time retention
70%

Program outcomes

Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.

Of 101 Title IV programs, 19 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 1 fails. 81 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
101
Passing
19
18.8% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
1
1.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
1.0%
+0.4pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

101programs
  • Passing19 · 18.8%
  • No Data81 · 80.2%
  • Failing1 · 1.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
1
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
1
Watch
3
Safe
15
No data
81

Tiers band programs by how far graduate earnings sit above or below the benchmark, from Critical (below −15%) through Safe (above +25%). No data means earnings were privacy-suppressed.

Earnings premium gap

Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.

20
Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services
Associate Degree · Personal And Culinary Services
-17.6%
$26,550 vs $32,203
Culinary Arts and Related Services
Associate Degree · Personal And Culinary Services
+7.8%
$34,705 vs $32,203
Teacher Education and Professional Development Specific Levels and Methods
Associate Degree · Education
+15.4%
$37,153 vs $32,203
Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+20.3%
$38,741 vs $32,203
Accounting and Related Services
Associate Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+20.5%
$38,809 vs $32,203
Health and Medical Administrative Services
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+30.1%
$41,911 vs $32,203
Legal Support Services
Associate Degree · Legal Professions And Studies
+34.9%
$43,452 vs $32,203
Business Administration Management and Operations
Associate Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+37.3%
$44,216 vs $32,203

Accreditation status & history

Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges

Accredited since 1969Next review Dec 2029

Programmatic accreditations · 5

Action history · 25

  1. Nov 2025Grant Substantive Change: Program
    Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges
  2. Nov 2025Renewal of Accreditation
    American Physical Therapy Association, Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education · Physical Therapy (PTA) - Programs for the physical therapist assistant
  3. May 2025Grant Substantive Change: Other
    Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges
  4. Jan 2025Grant Substantive Change: Program
    American Dental Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation · Dental Assisting (DA)
  5. Jun 2024Renewal of Accreditation
    Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Tuition & cost

What families actually pay, broken down by family income.

Net price by family income

Aid exceeds costFamily pays
$0–30k$3,550
$30–48k$4,969
$48–75k$3,912
$75–110k$5,760
$110k+

Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.

Avg net price
$3,660
-$2,719vs Community College median $6,380
Federal loans
0.0%
In-state tuition
$2,792
Out-of-state
$8,936

Federal aid volume & trends

Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.

In AY 2024–25, 8,528 students received $39.5M in Pell grants.

Pell recipients
8,528
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$39.5M
$39,540,888 total

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

6k
20
7k
21
7k
22
7k
23
9k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

No Direct Loan volume reported.

Loan awards count each loan type a student holds, not unique borrowers; one student may carry several (e.g. subsidized and unsubsidized), so the per-type figures are the reliable detail.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student loan default rate

The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.

Of 132 borrowers who entered repayment, 3 (2.2%) defaulted within three years below the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
2.2%
-0.1pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
132
Defaulted
3
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
13.5%
2017
10.6%
2018
7.4%
2019
2.2%
2020*
0.0%
This institutionNational rate

* Cohorts 2020 and later read near 0% because the federal COVID-19 payment pause (CARES Act) suspended defaults nationwide. These years reflect a national policy, not institutional performance; the 2019 cohort is the last measured under normal repayment.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Academic programs at CPCC

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs90
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

2,680 total completions
01Liberal Arts
1,82268.0%
02Health Professions
2398.9%
03Business
1244.6%
04Computer Sciences
1094.1%
05Mechanic
883.3%
06Visual/Performing Arts
792.9%
07Engineering
662.5%
08Education
582.2%
09Engineering Tech
511.9%
10Personal/Culinary
441.6%

Enrollment trends & demographics

Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.

Fall total
20,375
12-mo unduplicated
26,949
Undergraduate
26,949
Graduate
0

Gender split

Men
41%11,095
Women
59%15,854

Race / ethnicity composition

White
34.0%
Black
28.9%
Hispanic
19.7%
Non-resident
6.8%
Asian
4.4%
Two or more
3.3%
Unknown
2.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.1%

Campus safety & crime statistics

Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.

Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
0.45
8 offenses · 17,694 students

3-year trend

0.242 yrs ago0.291 yr ago0.45Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
17
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
5
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

Aggravated assault
3
Motor vehicle theft
3
Robbery
2

By location

8total
  • On campus5
  • Public property3

VAWA offenses

1
Domestic violence
1
Dating violence
0
Stalking
2 total under the Violence Against Women Act.

Hate crimes by bias

No hate crimes reported.

Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

CategoryArrestsReferrals
Weapons01
Drugs12
Liquor00

Residence-hall fires

No residence-hall fires reported.

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Student-faculty ratio

Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

Student-to-faculty
15.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
383

CPCC vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions CPCC selected for federal comparison reporting.

GraduationRetentionSelectivityEnrollmentAffordabilityYield
This institutionPeer median

A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.

Carnegie
SubjectCentral Piedmont Community College
31%20,375$3,660Community College
Catawba Valley Community College
4,904$9,415Community College
Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute
3,914$5,517Community College
Craven Community College
3,103$4,402Community College
Randolph Community College
2,814$7,242Community College
Brunswick Community College
2,009$8,785Community College
Peer group median31%3,509$6,380

Frequently asked questions about Central Piedmont Community College

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about CPCC.

What is the graduation rate at Central Piedmont Community College?

Central Piedmont Community College reports a 6-year graduation rate of 31% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Central Piedmont Community College?

Central Piedmont Community College reports a total enrollment of 20,375 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Central Piedmont Community College?

The average net price at Central Piedmont Community College is $3,660 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

Where is Central Piedmont Community College located?

Central Piedmont Community College is located in Charlotte, North Carolina 28204.

Have a question this page can’t answer?

Ask Clema anything about Central Piedmont Community College and its peers — plain language in, cited answers out, in minutes instead of days.

Free for teams up to 3 · No credit card