Community CollegePublicHSI

Prairie State College

Chicago Heights, Illinois·Public, 2-year·Great Lakes·prairiestate.edu
6-yr Graduation
21%
Total enrollment
2,953
peer median 3,835
Avg net price
$5,280
-$719 vs Community College
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Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
21%
Full-time retention
51%

Pell equity

35.0pp gap
Pell recipients
15%
Non-Pell
50%

Non-Pell students graduate at a 35.0-point higher rate than Pell recipients.

Program outcomes

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

Of 84 Title IV programs, 6 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 1 fails. 77 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
84
Passing
6
7.1% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
1
1.2% of portfolio
Fail rate
1.2%
+0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

84programs
  • Passing6 · 7.1%
  • No Data77 · 91.7%
  • Failing1 · 1.2%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
1
Recoverable
0
At Risk
0
Watch
1
Safe
5
No data
77

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.

7
Psychology General
Associate Degree · Psychology
-6.8%
$32,438 vs $34,808
Criminal Justice and Corrections
Associate Degree · Security And Protective Services
+12.6%
$39,190 vs $34,808
Liberal Arts and Sciences General Studies and Humanities
Associate Degree · Liberal Arts And Sciences, General Studies And Humanities
+35.2%
$47,062 vs $34,808
Business Administration Management and Operations
Associate Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
+36.6%
$47,550 vs $34,808
Health/Medical Preparatory Programs
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+39.9%
$48,709 vs $34,808
Dental Support Services and Allied Professions
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+88.2%
$65,505 vs $34,808
Registered Nursing Nursing Administration Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+150.6%
$87,212 vs $34,808

Debt vs earnings

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

5
Liberal Arts and Sciences General Studies and Humanities
Associate Degree · Liberal Arts And Sciences, General Studies And Humanities
32%
$14,817 debt · $47,062 earn
Business Administration Management and Operations
Associate Degree · Business, Management, Marketing, And Related Support Services
28%
$13,350 debt · $47,550 earn
Dental Support Services and Allied Professions
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
20%
$13,000 debt · $65,505 earn
Practical Nursing Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants
Undergraduate Certificate · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
19%
$7,789 debt · $42,205 earn
Registered Nursing Nursing Administration Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
16%
$14,000 debt · $87,212 earn

Accreditation status & history

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

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Higher Learning Commission

Accredited since 1965Next review Aug 2029

Programmatic accreditations · 3

Action history · 11

  1. Nov 2025Probation or Equivalent or a More Severe Status: Probation
    American Physical Therapy Association, Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education · Physical Therapy (PTA) - Programs for the physical therapist assistant
  2. Apr 2025Probation or Equivalent or a More Severe Status: Probation
    American Physical Therapy Association, Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education · Physical Therapy (PTA) - Programs for the physical therapist assistant
  3. Jan 2025Grant Substantive Change: Program
    American Dental Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation · Dental Hygiene (DH)
  4. Mar 2022Renewal of Accreditation
    Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc. — May 6, 2013 Formerly: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission · Nursing (ADNUR) - Associate degree programs
  5. Aug 2021Grant Substantive Change: Program
    American Dental Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation · Dental Hygiene (DH)

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$3,725
$30–48k$4,084
$48–75k$6,916
$75–110k$11,509
$110k+$13,713

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

Avg net price
$5,280
-$719vs Community College median $5,999
Federal loans
7.5%
In-state tuition
$4,176
Out-of-state
$11,064

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 1,608 students received $6.8M in Pell grants, alongside $1.6M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
1,608
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$6.8M
$6,792,649 total
Direct Loans
$1.6M
453 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$775K
232 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$829K
219 loan awards
Parent PLUS$16K
2 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 619 borrowers who entered repayment, 39 (6.3%) defaulted within three years above the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
6.3%
+4.0pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
619
Defaulted
39
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
17.7%
2017
15.6%
2018
11.2%
2019
6.3%
2020*
0.2%
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 Prairie State College

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs54
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

337 total completions
01Liberal Arts
20460.5%
02Health Professions
7923.4%
03Multi/Interdisciplinary
154.5%
04Computer Sciences
133.9%
05Construction Trades
72.1%
06Business
51.5%
07Family/Consumer Sci
41.2%
08Mechanic
41.2%
09Security/Protective
30.9%
10Engineering Tech
30.9%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
2,953
12-mo unduplicated
6,382
Undergraduate
6,382
Graduate
0

Gender split

Men
43%2,736
Women
57%3,646

Race / ethnicity composition

Black
53.7%
Hispanic
22.6%
White
13.1%
Two or more
3.6%
Unknown
3.4%
Non-resident
2.0%
Asian
1.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.2%

Athletics & Title IX gender equity

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

Athletes
126
75 M · 51 W
Women athletes
40.5%
Athletic aid
$338K
Total student aid
Budget
$918K
Total expenses

Men vs women · spending splits

Athletic student aid
$183K
$155K
Recruiting expense
$0
$0
Head-coach salaries
$10K
$9K
Men Women

Sport-by-sport · 6

Soccer
23 M · 20 W
$228K
Baseball
34 M ·
$112K
Basketball
12 M · 9 W
$128K
Softball
· 13 W
$91K
Volleyball
· 10 W
$43K
Tennis
6 M ·
$52K

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
0.00
0 offenses · 2,680 students

3-year trend

0.002 yrs ago0.001 yr ago0.00Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
0
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
0
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

No criminal offenses reported.

By location

0total

    VAWA offenses

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

    Hate crimes by bias

    No hate crimes reported.

    Arrests vs disciplinary referrals

    CategoryArrestsReferrals
    Weapons00
    Drugs00
    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
    12.0:1
    Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
    73

    Prairie State College vs Peer comparison

    The peer institutions Prairie State 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
    SubjectPrairie State College
    21%2,953$5,280Community College
    Black Hawk College
    4,001$6,718Community College
    Kaskaskia College
    3,669$6,839Community College
    Lewis and Clark Community College
    4,606$4,281Community College
    City Colleges of Chicago-Kennedy-King College
    3,274$4,902Community College
    Rock Valley College
    5,978$7,325Community College
    Peer group median21%3,835$5,999

    Frequently asked questions about Prairie State College

    Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Prairie State College.

    What is the graduation rate at Prairie State College?

    Prairie State College reports a 6-year graduation rate of 21% per the latest IPEDS.

    How many students attend Prairie State College?

    Prairie State College reports a total enrollment of 2,953 students per the latest IPEDS.

    What is the average net price at Prairie State College?

    The average net price at Prairie State College is $5,280 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

    Where is Prairie State College located?

    Prairie State College is located in Chicago Heights, Illinois 60411-8226.

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