Community CollegePublicHSI

Rio Salado College

Tempe, Arizona·Public, 4-year or above·Southwest·riosalado.edu
6-yr Graduation
9%
Total enrollment
18,841
peer median 9,177
Avg net price
$8,764
+$979 vs Community College
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Graduation rate & outcomes

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

Overall completion
9%

Pell equity

6.0pp gap
Pell recipients
6%
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 103 Title IV programs, 2 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 101 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.

Total programs
103
Passing
2
1.9% of portfolio
Failing (GE)
0
0.0% of portfolio
Fail rate
0.0%
-0.6pp vs 0.6% national

Pass / fail distribution

103programs
  • Passing2 · 1.9%
  • No Data101 · 98.1%
  • Failing0 · 0.0%

Severity spectrum

Critical
0
Severe
0
Recoverable
0
At Risk
0
Watch
0
Safe
2
No data
101

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
+44.3%
$51,899 vs $35,969
Dental Support Services and Allied Professions
Associate Degree · Health Professions And Related Clinical Sciences
+51.9%
$54,628 vs $35,969

Accreditation status & history

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

AccreditedInstitutional accreditor

Higher Learning Commission

Accredited since 1981Next review Aug 2032

Programmatic accreditations · 3

Action history · 5

  1. Aug 2023Renewal of Accreditation
    American Dental Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation · Dental Hygiene (DH)
  2. May 2022Renewal of Accreditation
    Higher Learning Commission
  3. Apr 2021Grant Substantive Change: Program
    American Dental Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation · Dental Hygiene (DH)
  4. Jul 2020Grant Substantive Change: Program
    American Dental Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation · Dental Hygiene (DH)
  5. Feb 2019Loss of Accreditation or Preaccreditation: Voluntary Withdrawal
    American Dental Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation · Dental Assisting (DA)

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$7,976
$30–48k$8,272
$48–75k$9,612
$75–110k$13,740
$110k+$12,507

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

Avg net price
$8,764
+$979vs Community College median $7,785
Federal loans
4.5%
In-state tuition
$2,358
Out-of-state
$8,958

Federal aid volume & trends

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

In AY 2024–25, 2,484 students received $9.1M in Pell grants, alongside $5.0M in federal Direct Loans.

Pell recipients
2,484
AY 2024–25
Pell disbursed
$9.1M
$9,096,057 total
Direct Loans
$5.0M
1,731 loan awards

Pell recipients · 5-year trend

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

Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25

Subsidized$3.1M
1,164 loan awards
Unsubsidized · UG$1.8M
564 loan awards
Parent PLUS$24K
3 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 1,997 borrowers who entered repayment, 78 (3.9%) defaulted within three years above the 2.3% national rate.

Default rate
3.9%
+1.6pp vs 2.3% national
Borrowers in repayment
1,997
Defaulted
78
Measurement window
3 years
Federal CDR standard

Default rate vs national, by cohort

2016
18.0%
2017
15.7%
2018
11.5%
2019
3.9%
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 Rio Salado College

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs98
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

621 total completions
01Liberal Arts
34054.8%
02Business
6911.1%
03Security/Protective
497.9%
04Health Professions
487.7%
05Computer Sciences
355.6%
06Education
193.1%
07Physical Sciences
193.1%
08Psychology
162.6%
09Legal Professions
152.4%
10Multi/Interdisciplinary
111.8%

Enrollment trends & demographics

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

Fall total
18,841
12-mo unduplicated
34,287
Undergraduate
34,287
Graduate
0

Gender split

Men
42%14,264
Women
58%20,023

Race / ethnicity composition

White
39.6%
Hispanic
33.7%
Black
13.7%
Two or more
4.7%
Asian
3.3%
Unknown
2.6%
American Indian / Alaska Native
1.8%
Non-resident
0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.4%

Campus safety & crime statistics

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

Criminal offenses · per 1,000 students
0.12
2 offenses · 17,078 students

3-year trend

0.062 yrs ago0.261 yr ago0.12Latest
Offenses · 3-yr
7
Last three years
VAWA · 3-yr
1
DV, dating, stalking
Hate crimes · 3-yr
0
Res-hall fires · 3-yr
0

Criminal offenses by type

Aggravated assault
2

By location

2total
  • Public property2

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
Weapons20
Drugs190
Liquor60

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
31.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
57

Rio Salado College vs Peer comparison

The peer institutions Rio Salado 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
SubjectRio Salado College
9%18,841$8,764Community College
Eastern Arizona College
5,213$9,765Community College
Mohave Community College
4,619$6,806Community College
St Philip's College
17,299$4,873Community College
Central Texas College
8,373$6,408Community College
Odessa College
9,981$9,296Community College
Peer group median9%9,177$7,785

Frequently asked questions about Rio Salado College

Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Rio Salado College.

What is the graduation rate at Rio Salado College?

Rio Salado College reports a 6-year graduation rate of 9% per the latest IPEDS.

How many students attend Rio Salado College?

Rio Salado College reports a total enrollment of 18,841 students per the latest IPEDS.

What is the average net price at Rio Salado College?

The average net price at Rio Salado College is $8,764 per the latest College Scorecard. Net price is the published cost of attendance minus grant aid.

Where is Rio Salado College located?

Rio Salado College is located in Tempe, Arizona 85281.

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