by our College Data Analytics TeamMost students are not billed the full, advertised sticker price of a school. Instead, they will be given a financial aid offer that will include a combination of scholarships, grants, loans, and work-study. The price tag of going to Lower Columbia College can appear overpowering, but remember that the majority of students obtain some kind of financial assistance.
Just what financing solutions does LCC deliver, and just what are you going to be eligible for? Keep scrolling for answers. Scroll down to discover how much school funding could be available to you.
The amount of financial aid and scholarships you are eligible for will vary depending on your family’s income. The figures below will help you estimate the aid you might receive from Lower Columbia College.
Through a mix of loans, grants, work-study and scholarships, schools bring down the effective cost so more students can attend. Bear in mind that not all aid is equal, and the amount any one student receives can vary widely.
At Lower Columbia College, 80% of new full-time first-years were awarded at least some aid some 218 students).
| Type of Aid | % of Freshmen Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 76% | $6,564 |
| Institutional grants & scholarships | 29% | $1,947 |
| Federal Pell grants | 48% | $4,790 |
| State/local grants | 51% | $3,912 |
| Federal student loans | 14% | $6,136 |
Grants and scholarships are the most valuable form of aid because, unlike loans, they never have to be repaid. Across the undergraduate body at LCC, roughly 52% of undergrads got grants or scholarships worth on average $7,586 (covering around 1266 undergraduates).
| Award | % of Undergrads Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 52% | $7,586 |
| Federal Pell grants | 36% | $4,714 |
| Federal student loans | 13% | $6,880 |
For students living on campus and receiving title-IV aid, grants averaged $8,539.
Because need-based aid scales with family income, what students actually pay differs sharply across income brackets.
| Family Income | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| $0 – $48,000 | $6,825 |
| $30,001 – $75,000 | $8,651 |
| Over $75,000 | $14,681 |
These figures reflect what title-IV aid recipients pay after grant and scholarship aid is applied.
Net price is the cost remaining after grant and scholarship aid is subtracted from the sticker price, and it is the most useful single number for estimating real cost.
| Cohort | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| On-campus title-IV students | $7,630 |
| Off-campus title-IV students | $8,222 |
For a customized cost estimate, visit LCC’s online cost calculator: services4.lowercolumbia.edu/info/webResources2/NetPrice/npcalc.html.
Graduating students at LCC carry a median federal student debt of $6,487 of cumulative federal debt.
| Metric | Amount |
|---|---|
| Median federal debt (all student-aid borrowers) | $6,487 |
| Median federal debt (graduates only) | $10,506 |
| Typical 10-year monthly payment (graduates) | $111.38/mo |
The 10-year payment estimate assumes a standard federal repayment plan and the median graduate debt amount.
A single median figure conceals how much debt outcomes differ student to student. The four reference points below map the debt distribution at LCC.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $1,684 |
| 25th percentile | $3,167 |
| 75th percentile | $15,282 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $23,993 |
Debt outcomes are not uniform — they shift with income, first-generation status, and dependency.
Debt by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $7,917 |
| Middle income | $6,332 |
| High income | $5,347 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Median Debt
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $6,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $6,086 |
Dependent vs Independent Students
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $4,238 |
| Independent students | $8,103 |
A handful of calculated indicators summarize the debt outlook at LCC.
Stafford loans are the federal government’s primary direct undergraduate lending program. The aggregate figures below show how active the program is at LCC:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Stafford loan recipients | 6285 |
| Total Stafford loan amount | $74,683,316 |
Military-affiliated students can tap the Post-9/11 GI Bill and DoD Tuition Assistance.
Post-9/11 GI Bill recipients
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| GI Bill recipients | 51 |
| Total GI Bill amount | $171,218 |
| Average GI Bill amount per recipient | $3,357 |
DoD Tuition Assistance activity
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| DoD Tuition Assistance recipients | 7 |
| Total DoD amount | $17,831 |
| Average DoD amount per recipient | $2,547 |
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.