---
title: Palo Alto College — cost, debt & earnings (College Scorecard)
location: San Antonio, TX
control: Public
source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (2026-06-10 release)
sourceUrl: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/
---

# Palo Alto College

San Antonio, TX · Public · Associate-granting

> Federal College Scorecard institution **medians** — not a prediction of any one student's outcome, and not a figure for any single program. Earnings/debt cover federally-aided students.

## The bottom line

| Figure | Value | Status |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Typical earnings, 10 yrs after entry | $37,448 | recorded |
| Earnings range (25th–75th pct) | $21,915 – $54,989 | recorded |
| Typical federal debt | $6,779 | recorded |
| Debt of students who withdrew | $6,000 | recorded |
| Completion rate | 33% | recorded |
| Average annual net cost | $11,946 | recorded |
| % earning above a $28k HS-grad wage | 54% | recorded |
| Debt ÷ a year's earnings | 0.18× | derived |
| Earnings premium vs $28k HS benchmark | $9,448 | derived |

**33% of students finish** — the loans are owed whether or not you graduate, so read every figure below next to this number.

Typical **federal** loan debt is $6,779 (≈ 18% of a year's typical earnings here). Note: this counts federal loans only — not private loans, Parent PLUS, or family savings — so true borrowing is usually higher; and because dropouts borrow less, low-completion schools can show a deceptively low debt figure.

## Earnings by major (the number that decides "worth it")

> **Different measure — read on its own terms.** These are median earnings **1 year after completing the program** (early career, graduates only) — NOT the 10-years-after-entry school-wide figure above. Do not compare a program figure to the school figure; compare majors to each other. The Dept. of Education omits programs with too few graduates.

By program, early-career pay ranges from $18,703 to $27,432 across 5 program(s).

| Major | Credential | Pay (1 yr out) | Median debt |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections. | Associate's Degree | $27,432 | not reported |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Associate's Degree | $27,013 | not reported |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. | Associate's Degree | $22,510 | $10,142 |
| Health/Medical Preparatory Programs. | Associate's Degree | $22,163 | not reported |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities. | Associate's Degree | $18,703 | not reported |

## What this is — and is NOT

Institution-wide medians from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. **Not** a prediction of what you would earn or owe, **not** a figure for any single program (a CS and a fine-arts graduate of the same school diverge enormously), **not** proof the school caused the outcome (selection, not causation), and **not** a "best college" ranking. Explore Palo Alto College by field of study at the official Scorecard: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?246354

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Structured data (JSON-LD), each figure labeled by epistemic status: `/education/palo-alto-college-tx.jsonld` · all schools: `/education`