Western Piedmont Community College (WPCC) vs Laurel Ridge Community College (LRCC)

Western Piedmont Community College and Laurel Ridge Community College, both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer diverse educational opportunities to students in North Carolina. While they share a commitment to academic excellence, they also possess distinct characteristics that cater to different student needs and aspirations. Western Piedmont boasts an impressive 100% acceptance rate, welcoming students from all backgrounds to pursue their academic goals. Laurel Ridge, on the other hand, maintains a selective admissions policy, with an acceptance rate of 75%, ensuring a rigorous and competitive learning environment. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to delve into further details regarding acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, graduation rates, and more, empowering you to make an informed decision that aligns with your unique educational aspirations.

	Laurel Ridge Community College	Western Piedmont Community College
Overview
Location	Middletown, Virginia	Morganton, North Carolina
Campus setting	Rural: Fringe	City: Small
College type	2 year	2 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	60.0%	58.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	Open Admission	Open Admission
Application fees
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants
Total number of admissions given out
Admitted students who chose to enroll
Yield rate
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	Not required	Not required
High school GPA	N/A	N/A
Recommendation letters	N/A	N/A
High school transcript	N/A	N/A
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	N/A	N/A

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $19,519 Out of state: $25,522	In state: $20,599 Out of state: $26,743
Average net price	$8,359	$5,965
Tuition	In state: $4,620 Out of state: $9,918	In state: $2,432 Out of state: $8,576
Room & board
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	43.0% Average amount $3,196	76.0% Average amount $9,469
Students receiving federal student loan	5.0% Average amount $4,128
Students taking out private loans	2.0% Average amount $5,523

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	5,862 Men 37.2% Women 62.8%	1,670 Men 34.9% Women 65.1%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	0.9%	0.0%
International students	0.5%	0.4%
Campus local/setting	Rural: Fringe	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	N/A	N/A
First year students are required to live on campus?	N/A	N/A
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Virginia West Virginia Florida	North Carolina

Academics
Popular study areas	Liberal Arts Health Professions Multidisciplinary Studies Computer and Information Science Engineering Technologies	Liberal Arts Health Professions Law Enforcement and Firefighting Engineering Technologies Business
Students to faculty ratio	25:1	9:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	44.7%	50.6%
Dropout rate	38.0%	24.4%
Transferred out	11.0%	11.4%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $54,854 Year 2: $55,383 Year 3: $61,843 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $25,409 Year 2: $35,954 Year 3: $38,348 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $26,691 Year 2: $23,768 Year 3: $30,049 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: $14,166 Year 2: $20,140 Year 3: $26,160 Biological and Physical Sciences (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $30,652 Year 2: $29,141 Year 3: N/A Health and Medical Administrative Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $28,598 Year 3: N/A Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: $32,343 Year 2: $43,426 Year 3: N/A Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $25,194 Year 3: N/A	Criminal Justice and Corrections (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: $31,229 Year 2: $36,085 Year 3: $40,245 Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $26,628 Year 2: $25,484 Year 3: $26,872 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $20,175 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $23,378 Dental Support Services and Allied Professions (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $27,995 Year 3: N/A Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $53,843 Year 2: $61,218 Year 3: N/A

Compare Similar Colleges

The list of suggested college comparisons provided below is generated automatically by our system, utilizing statistics gathered from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and various online sources. If you don't find the colleges you wish to compare, please visit our comparison page. There, you can search for the specific colleges and initiate your comparison.