by our College Data Analytics TeamA large number of 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 sum total of attendance at Western Nebraska Community College can sound tremendous, but do not forget that almost all students get some type of financial help.
Just what financial assistance solutions will WNCC provide, and just what are you going to be eligible for? Read on for answers. Keep going to see what amount of financial assistance could be accessible 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 Western Nebraska Community College.
Through a mix of loans, grants, work-study and scholarships, schools bring down the effective cost so more students can attend. However, some types of aid are more desirable than others, and some students will receive more than others.
At Western Nebraska Community College, 88% of new full-time first-years were awarded at least some aid approximately 223 new students).
| Type of Aid | % of Freshmen Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 80% | $7,803 |
| Institutional grants & scholarships | 61% | $4,929 |
| Federal Pell grants | 39% | $6,616 |
| State/local grants | 28% | $2,147 |
| Federal student loans | 9% | $3,500 |
Gift aid — grants and scholarships — beats loans every time because none of it has to be repaid. Across the undergraduate body at WNCC, around 56% of the undergraduate population received grant aid that averaged $6,856 (across approximately 852 recipients).
| Award | % of Undergrads Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 56% | $6,856 |
| Federal Pell grants | 27% | $6,502 |
| Federal student loans | 8% | $4,421 |
On-campus students receiving title-IV aid were awarded grants averaging $8,465.
Since aid is largely need-based, the real cost of attendance falls steeply for lower-income families.
| Family Income | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| $0 – $48,000 | $3,530 |
| $30,001 – $75,000 | $4,776 |
| Over $75,000 | $9,163 |
Each figure is the net price after grants and scholarships, not the published sticker price.
After grants and scholarships come off the published price, what remains is the net price — the best estimate of true out-of-pocket cost.
| Cohort | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| On-campus title-IV students | $5,474 |
| Off-campus title-IV students | $4,974 |
For a customized cost estimate, visit WNCC’s official net price calculator: www.wncc.edu/admissions-aid/tuition-fees/net-price-calculator-2023/index.
The middle student in the debt distribution at WNCC owes $5,500 of cumulative federal debt.
| Metric | Amount |
|---|---|
| Median federal debt (all student-aid borrowers) | $5,500 |
| Median federal debt (graduates only) | $9,000 |
| Typical 10-year monthly payment (graduates) | $95.41/mo |
Under a standard ten-year plan, the median graduate’s monthly payment lands near the figure above.
The numbers below show the full range, not just the middle of the distribution. These percentiles trace how cumulative federal debt is spread among borrowers at WNCC.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $1,458 |
| 25th percentile | $2,460 |
| 75th percentile | $8,475 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $13,000 |
How much a student borrows depends heavily on family income, first-gen status, and dependency.
Debt by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $6,500 |
| Middle income | $5,279 |
| High income | $5,500 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $5,500 |
| Continuing-generation students | $5,500 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,489 |
| Independent students | $6,500 |
The figure below distills the debt data into a single burden category for WNCC.
Stafford loans are the federal government’s primary direct undergraduate lending program. The annual Stafford volume below reflects program activity at WNCC:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Stafford loan recipients | 3197 |
| Total Stafford loan amount | $23,850,308 |
If you are a veteran or active-duty service member, the GI Bill and DoD Tuition Assistance are the primary federal programs you can use at this school.
GI Bill volume
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| GI Bill recipients | 17 |
| Total GI Bill amount | $37,948 |
| Average GI Bill amount per recipient | $2,232 |
DoD Tuition Assistance activity
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| DoD Tuition Assistance recipients | 4 |
| Total DoD amount | $9,599 |
| Average DoD amount per recipient | $2,400 |
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.