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Community college · Public

Riverland Community College

Austin, MN678 online only

Riverland Community College is a public community college in Austin, MN, with about 2,913 students on campus.

Students on campus
2,913
plus 678 studying only online
Admission rate
Open
open enrollment
Net price a year
$7,427
tuition and fees $6,298; the net price adds housing and food
Graduation rate
52%
lower than at 66% of 2-year colleges
Earnings, 10 yrs later
$45,247
higher than at 61% of U.S. colleges
In brief

What to know about Riverland Community College

The only college for 30 miles

No other degree-granting college with students on campus is within 30 miles of Riverland Community College. Nearby ↓

Most students study part-time

55% of undergraduates attend part-time. The graduation rate counts only first-time, full-time students, so it covers a minority of the people studying here. The students ↓

Rent in Austin is below the state median

Median rent in Austin is $953 a month, 26% below the state median. Living in Austin ↓

This summary is written from the data on this page. Figures are from the U.S. Department of Education’s College Scorecard; graduation rates count only first-time, full-time students.

★ What stands out · Who goes there

The students

2,003 degree-seeking undergraduates.

By race and ethnicity

White 64%Hispanic 17%Black 8%Asian 4%Two or more 2%International 1%

Women and men

Women 52%Men 48%
20 : 1
students per teacher
24%
get Pell grants (lower income)
14%
take federal loans
24%
undergrads 25 or older
55%
study part time
Getting in

How hard is it to get into Riverland Community College?

Open

anyone with a high school diploma can enroll

Test scores of admitted students

No SAT or ACT ranges reported. Riverland Community College is likely test-optional.

What it costs

The sticker price, and what families really pay

Sticker price: $14,442 a year

Before any grants

Tuition & fees (in state) $6,298Books & supplies $1,600Other costs $6,544

After grants, the average family on aid pays $7,427.

Tuition and fees are $6,298 a year. The net price also counts housing, food and other costs at full price, so a student living at home pays less than it shows.

Your family’s price

Average net price after grants, by family income

$7,274

About $14,548 over 2 years · 50% off the sticker price

Under $30k$30–48k$48–75k$75–110kOver $110k
Outcomes

Do students finish, and does it pay off?

Graduate
52%
within 3 years · Pell students 45%
Come back for year two
75%
full-time first-year students
Earnings, 10 years later
$45,247
median, students on federal aid
Typical debt
$12,000
about $127 a month over 10 years

Debt vs. the paycheck

The typical loan payment as a share of a typical graduate’s monthly pay six years after starting

3.7%
0%10%: a common comfort line25%

$127 a month against about $3,420 a month in pay.

Paying back loans

Federal student loans, this college

47%

of borrowers paid down at least some of their loan within three years, more than at 55% of U.S. colleges.

Almost none defaulted within three years (payments on federal loans were paused from 2020 to 2023, so recent default rates are near zero everywhere).

Earnings by family background

Median earnings 10 years after starting, by family income at enrollment

Lower incomeunder $30k
$40k
Middle income$30–75k
$47k
Higher incomeover $75k
$55k
Majors

What students study, and what it pays

Share of degrees by field

Liberal arts 28%Health professions 14%Business 11%Mechanic & repair 8%Construction trades 6%Agriculture 5%Everything else 28%

Associate degree programs with the most graduates

And their graduates’ median earnings four years later (one year where that’s all that’s reported).

Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities216 graduates a year · typical debt $12,200
$48k4 yrs out
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing55 graduates a year · typical debt $17,180
$69k4 yrs out
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions19 graduates a year
$63k4 yrs out
Business/Commerce, General18 graduates a year
$52k4 yrs out
Computer Engineering Technologies/Technicians14 graduates a year
—not reported
Computer Software and Media Applications11 graduates a year
—not reported
Criminal Justice and Corrections11 graduates a year
$58k4 yrs out
Human Services, General11 graduates a year
$47k4 yrs out
The town around it

Living in Austin

4% of Austin’s 26,689 residents are enrolled in college. What the town is like, from TownRatings’ Austin pages.

Austin →

Ask around

Students, parents, alumni and the neighbors next door.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (institution and field-of-study files) and IPEDS (Scorecard 06/10/2026 · IPEDS 2024 · fall 2023); town figures from the Census American Community Survey and NOAA climate normals. Graduation rates count first-time, full-time students; earnings and debt are for students who received federal aid. Distances are straight-line. Colleges are described, not graded (how TownRatings describes colleges). Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.