Community CollegePublic

Lower Columbia College

Longview, Washington·Public, 4-year or above·Far West·lowercolumbia.edu
6-yr Graduation
23%
Total enrollment
2,724
peer median 8,531
Avg net price
$8,222
+$562 vs Community College
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Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
23%

Pell equity

17.0pp gap
Pell recipients
17%
Non-Pell
0%

Pell recipients graduate at a higher rate than non-Pell students here — unusual and worth investigating.

Program outcomes

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

Of 41 Title IV programs, 2 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 39 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
41
Passing
2
4.9% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

41programs
  • Passing2 · 4.9%
  • No Data39 · 95.1%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
1
Watch
0
Safe
1
No data
39

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.

2
Liberal Arts and Sciences General Studies and Humanities
Associate Degree · Liberal Arts And Sciences, General Studies And Humanities
+7.3%
$41,925 vs $39,073
Registered Nursing Nursing Administration Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+136.7%
$92,471 vs $39,073

Debt vs earnings

Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.

2
Liberal Arts and Sciences General Studies and Humanities
Associate Degree · Liberal Arts And Sciences, General Studies And Humanities
20%
$8,500 debt · $41,925 earn
Registered Nursing Nursing Administration Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
13%
$12,409 debt · $92,471 earn

Accreditation status & history

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

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities

Accredited since 1948Next review Oct 2025

Programmatic accreditations · 2

Action history · 5

  1. Sep 2025Initial Accreditation
    Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education · Nursing (CNURED) - Nursing education programs at the baccalaureate degree levels
  2. Apr 2023Renewal of Accreditation
    Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc. — May 6, 2013 Formerly: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission · Nursing (ADNUR) - Associate degree programs
  3. Jan 2019Renewal of Accreditation
    Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities
  4. Oct 2018Renewal of Accreditation
    Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities
  5. Jul 2017Accreditation Reaffirmed: Probation Removed
    Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc. — May 6, 2013 Formerly: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission · Nursing (ADNUR) - Associate degree programs

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$6,427
$30–48k$8,037
$48–75k$9,265
$75–110k$14,179
$110k+$15,683

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

Avg net price
$8,222
+$562vs Community College median $7,660
Federal loans
18.1%
In-state tuition
$4,346
Out-of-state
$5,633

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 1,579 students received $7.0M in Pell grants, alongside $2.6M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
1,579
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$7.0M
$6,981,908 total
Direct Loans
$2.6M
742 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

1k
20
1k
21
1k
22
1k
23
2k
24

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$965K
347 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$1.6M
390 loan awards
Parent PLUS$68K
5 loan awards

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 377 borrowers who entered repayment, 17 (4.5%) defaulted within three years above the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
4.5%
+2.2pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
377
Defaulted
17
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
15.7%
2017
18.6%
2018
15.1%
2019
4.5%
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 Lower Columbia College

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs57
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

494 total completions
01Liberal Arts
27455.5%
02Health Professions
13527.3%
03Business
255.1%
04Precision Production
142.8%
05Education
132.6%
06Mechanic
102.0%
07Engineering
102.0%
08Computer Sciences
51.0%
09Visual/Performing Arts
40.8%
10Biological Sciences
40.8%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
2,724
12-mo unduplicated
3,420
Undergraduate
3,420
Graduate
0

Gender split

Men
30%1,020
Women
70%2,400

Race / ethnicity composition

White
65.8%
Hispanic
14.2%
Two or more
7.8%
Unknown
5.1%
Black
2.6%
Asian
1.8%
Non-resident
1.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native
1.0%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.5%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

How athletic participation, aid, and spending are split between men and women.

Athletes
109
45 M · 64 W
Women athletes
58.7%
Athletic aid
$118K
Total student aid
Budget
$722K
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$38K
$80K
Recruiting expense
$3K
$1K
Head-coach salaries
$11K
$11K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 5

Baseball
34 M ·
$124K
Soccer
· 25 W
$84K
Basketball
11 M · 12 W
$137K
Softball
· 17 W
$62K
Volleyball
· 11 W
$60K

Source: U.S. Dept. of Education

Campus safety & crime statistics

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

Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
1.64
4 offenses · 2,435 students

3-year trend

0.862 yrs ago1.391 yr ago1.64Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
9
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
2
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
2

Criminal offenses by type

Rape
4

By location

4total
  • Public property4

VAWA offenses

2
Domestic violence
0
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
Weapons00
Drugs10
Liquor02

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)
75

Lower Columbia College vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Lower Columbia College 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
SubjectLower Columbia College
23%2,724$8,222Community College
Oregon Health & Science University
2,942
University of California-San Francisco
3,007
San Bernardino Valley College
14,055$8,234Community College
Mt San Jacinto Community College District
17,627$7,098Community College
Sierra College
19,125$4,462Community College
Peer group median23%8,531$7,660

Frequently asked questions about Lower Columbia College

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Lower Columbia College.

What is the graduation rate at Lower Columbia College?

Lower Columbia College reports a 6-year graduation rate of 23% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Lower Columbia College?

Lower Columbia College reports a total enrollment of 2,724 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Lower Columbia College?

The average net price at Lower Columbia College is $8,222 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

Where is Lower Columbia College located?

Lower Columbia College is located in Longview, Washington 98632.

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