Schools Ranked by Default Rate

Default rates measure the percentage of students who fail to repay their federal student loans. A lower default rate indicates that students are finding an adequate means of income after leaving the school because they can afford to pay back their student loans. In addition, lower default rates also indicate a lower amount of student debt. For each school, we looked at the cohort default rates published by the College Navigator database for the 2009 fiscal year.

College Navigator did not have the default rate for all of the colleges on our list. We did not, however, want to penalize those colleges without data. To that end, we simply excluded those schools from the rankings in this category.

Rank School FT to PT
Faculty Ratio		 Institution
Fin. Aid Rate		 Acceptance Rate Retention Rate Graduation Rate Accred.
Years		 Default
Rate		 Job Place. Rate  
698 Kentucky Wesleyan College 1.17 to 1 95% 52% 54% 44% 64 18% N/A  
702 Jackson Community College 0.27 to 1 13% N/A 56% 11% 79 18% N/A  
702 Northwest Florida State College 0.47 to 1 11% N/A N/A 37% 45 18% N/A  
702 San Joaquin Valley College-Online 0.48 to 1 0% N/A 41% 39% N/A 18% N/A  
705 Arkansas Tech University 1.69 to 1 32% 90% 68% 43% 82 19% N/A  
705 Post University 0.12 to 1 51% 77% 57% 36% 40 19% N/A  
707 Cowley County Community College 0.34 to 1 42% N/A 50% 29% 37 19% N/A  
708 Prairie View A & M University 4.85 to 1 23% 40% 64% 34% 78 19% N/A  
708 Western Iowa Tech Community College 0.26 to 1 15% N/A 57% 22% 35 19% N/A  
710 Baker College of Flint 0.12 to 1 65% N/A 48% 11% 35 19% 97%  
710 Bay State College 0.26 to 1 79% 76% 75% 22% 38 19% N/A  
710 Clark State Community College 0.15 to 1 8% N/A 47% 9% 38 19% 100%  
713 Fisher College 0.25 to 1 86% 59% 71% 40% 42 19% N/A  
713 Guilford Technical Community College 0.58 to 1 5% N/A 59% 14% 43 19% N/A  
713 Lincoln Land Community College 0.53 to 1 8% N/A 54% 20% 39 19% N/A  
713 Red Rocks Community College 0.20 to 1 2% N/A 54% 23% 37 19% N/A  
717 Adams State College 0.91 to 1 65% 64% 54% 20% 62 19% N/A  
717 Berkeley College-New York 0.57 to 1 89% N/A 50% 33% 19 19% N/A  
719 Pikes Peak Community College 0.25 to 1 7% N/A 57% 21% 37 19% N/A  
720 El Camino College-Compton Center 0.46 to 1 2% N/A N/A 9% N/A 19% N/A  
720 Miami Dade College 0.19 to 1 29% N/A N/A 25% 47 19% 90%  
720 Stratford University 0.10 to 1 0% N/A 61% 51% 10 19% N/A  
723 Iowa Central Community College 0.28 to 1 48% N/A 55% 39% 38 20% N/A  
723 Mid-Plains Community College 0.31 to 1 51% N/A 50% 35% 47 20% N/A  
725 Brevard Community College 0.30 to 1 10% N/A 69% 47% 47 20% N/A  
725 Huntington Junior College 1.05 to 1 4% N/A 48% 37% 15 20% N/A  
727 Amarillo College 0.90 to 1 19% N/A 56% 14% 79 20% N/A  
728 Ashford University-Iowa 0.02 to 1 10% 90% 42% 22% 62 20% N/A  
728 Edgecombe Community College 0.53 to 1 4% N/A N/A 56% 39 20% N/A  
728 Scottsdale Community College 0.37 to 1 26% N/A 58% 17% 37 20% N/A  
731 Cameron University 1.29 to 1 39% N/A 56% 18% 80 20% N/A  
731 Missouri Western State University 0.96 to 1 43% N/A 62% 28% 93 20% N/A  
731 Victory University 0.36 to 1 13% 31% 72% 10% 26 20% N/A  
734 College of DuPage 0.24 to 1 2% N/A 65% 11% 80 20% N/A  
734 Gulf Coast Community College 0.60 to 1 40% N/A N/A 33% 50 20% N/A  
734 Keiser University-Ft. Lauderdale 1.44 to 1 46% 89% 84% 57% 21 20% N/A  
734 Lake Land College 0.30 to 1 21% N/A 57% 25% 39 20% N/A  
738 Ivy Tech Community College-Central Indiana 0.32 to 1 10% N/A 52% 4% 43 20% N/A  
738 New River Community College 0.31 to 1 14% N/A 60% 21% 40 20% N/A  
738 Potomac College-Washington 0.12 to 1 0% N/A N/A 20% 18 20% N/A  
741 College of Southern Nevada 0.55 to 1 12% N/A N/A 11% 37 20% N/A  
741 Walters State Community College 0.27 to 1 17% 100% 55% 19% 40 20% N/A  
743 Sinclair Community College 0.44 to 1 9% N/A 51% 10% 42 20% N/A  
744 Finger Lakes Community College 0.43 to 1 5% N/A N/A 29% 35 21% N/A  
745 Northwestern College 0.47 to 1 47% 94% 32% 23% 15 21% N/A  
745 St Petersburg College 0.22 to 1 25% N/A N/A 28% 81 21% N/A  
747 Northwestern College-Southwestern Campus to 1 N/A 95% 39% 36% 9 21% N/A  
748 Kirtland Community College 0.31 to 1 16% N/A 51% 18% 36 21% 0%  
749 Fremont College 0.23 to 1 0% N/A 60% 65% 26 21% N/A  
749 Missouri State University-West Plains 0.42 to 1 38% N/A 44% 32% 18 21% N/A  
751 Seminole State College of Florida 0.33 to 1 10% N/A N/A 32% 43 21% N/A  
752 College of Marin 0.36 to 1 0% N/A 65% 24% 60 21% N/A  
752 Darton College 0.88 to 1 4% N/A N/A 14% 44 21% N/A  
752 Ozarks Technical Community College 0.39 to 1 2% N/A 59% 18% 16 21% N/A  
752 Virginia College 0.31 to 1 8% N/A N/A N/A 3 21% N/A  
756 Springfield College in Illinois to 1 N/A N/A N/A 41% 79 21% 96%  
757 Southwest Florida College 0.28 to 1 10% N/A 36% 32% 28 21% N/A  
758 Southern Arkansas University Tech 1.17 to 1 21% N/A 60% 39% 32 21% N/A  
759 Briarcliffe College 0.15 to 1 13% N/A 69% 42% 16 22% N/A  
759 LA College International 0.08 to 1 1% N/A 26% 44% 9 22% N/A  
759 Vincennes University 0.27 to 1 13% N/A 74% 23% 54 22% 95%  
762 Community College of Aurora 0.12 to 1 15% N/A 56% 24% 24 22% N/A  
762 Three Rivers Community College 0.36 to 1 17% N/A 53% 19% 38 22% N/A  
764 Community College of Denver 0.28 to 1 8% N/A 53% 11% 37 22% N/A  
764 Grand Rapids Community College 0.34 to 1 7% N/A 55% 15% 95 22% N/A  
766 Salem International University 0.71 to 1 31% N/A 43% 14% 49 22% N/A  
767 Cincinnati State Technical and Community College 0.37 to 1 3% N/A 48% 13% 36 22% N/A  
767 Florida National College-Main Campus 1.33 to 1 0% N/A 70% 57% 15 22% N/A  
769 Tennessee Temple University 5.00 to 1 60% 25% 33% 27% 12 22% N/A  
770 Atlantic Cape Community College 0.31 to 1 2% N/A N/A 15% 41 23% N/A  
770 Westwood College-Los Angeles 0.06 to 1 20% 47% 29% 16% 21 23% N/A  
772 Clatsop Community College 0.41 to 1 39% N/A 6% 12% 47 23% N/A  
772 Fort Valley State University 2.51 to 1 5% 58% 59% 33% 61 23% N/A  
774 Patten University 0.35 to 1 96% N/A 20% 19% 32 23% N/A  
774 Rio Salado College 0.03 to 1 1% N/A 37% 27% 31 23% N/A  
776 National American University-Rapid City 0.02 to 1 13% N/A 29% 28% 27 23% N/A  
777 Beckfield College-Florence 0.16 to 1 15% N/A 100% 48% 19 23% N/A  
778 Alvin Community College 0.58 to 1 7% N/A 60% 12% 53 23% N/A  
778 Eastern Wyoming College 0.98 to 1 46% N/A N/A 34% 36 23% N/A  
778 South Georgia College 0.81 to 1 8% N/A 46% 13% 78 23% N/A  
781 The Art Institute of Pittsburgh-Online Division 0.24 to 1 81% 75% 63% 21% N/A 23% N/A  
782 Bryant and Stratton College-Buffalo Campus 0.30 to 1 30% 100% N/A 13% 10 23% 95%  
783 Carrington College-Phoenix 1.14 to 1 0% 100% 68% 68% 20 24% N/A  
784 Arkansas Northeastern College 1.27 to 1 17% N/A N/A 24% 32 24% N/A  
785 Clinton Community College 0.42 to 1 4% N/A 48% 27% 37 24% N/A  
785 Dover Business College 1.07 to 1 12% 68% N/A 56% 38 24% N/A  
787 Eagle Gate College 0.24 to 1 10% N/A 100% 61% 8 24% N/A  
788 Texas Southern University 2.68 to 1 21% 39% 61% 12% 64 24% N/A  
789 DeVry University-Illinois 0.04 to 1 21% 78% 53% 33% 30 24% N/A  
790 Cochise College 0.29 to 1 21% N/A 53% 15% 43 24% N/A  
790 Oklahoma City Community College 0.24 to 1 25% N/A 49% 10% 35 24% N/A  
792 Illinois Eastern Community Colleges-Olney Central College 0.77 to 1 73% N/A 58% 46% 49 24% N/A  
793 Bossier Parish Community College 0.49 to 1 17% N/A 49% 14% 29 25% N/A  
794 Fulton-Montgomery Community College 0.44 to 1 3% N/A N/A 31% 43 25% N/A  
795 Colorado Technical University Online 0.01 to 1 9% N/A 20% 10% N/A 25% N/A  
795 Southeastern Illinois College 0.71 to 1 30% N/A 44% 36% 36 25% N/A  
797 Sullivan University 0.87 to 1 44% N/A N/A 52% 33 25% N/A  
798 George C Wallace State Community College-Hanceville 0.69 to 1 31% N/A N/A 21% 34 26% N/A  
798 Vatterott College-Berkerley 4.25 to 1 37% N/A N/A 40% 31 26% N/A  
800 Community Care College 14.00 to 1 0% N/A 71% 74% 14 26% N/A  

Methodology

For each college, we gathered data for nine different metrics: the number of full-time faculty per part-time faculty member; institutional financial aid, acceptance, retention, graduation, job placement, and default rates; years accredited; and undergraduate tuition. Learn more