2019’s States with the Best & Worst Community-College Systems—Hawaii Ranks 13th
From Wallet Hub, August 19, 2019
University education is out of reach for many Americans, especially those from low-income households. But thanks to community colleges, higher education is more accessible than ever. Compared with public four-year institutions, where tuition and fees cost almost three times as much on average, community colleges offer many savings for students.
Some states make community college even more accessible than usual. Multiple states and numerous cities across the U.S. have started “College Promise” programs that give residents free rides to community college. New York, Oregon, Rhode Island and Tennessee are some of the states that have joined so far. Such initiatives are proving to be more critical than ever, with college tuition increases outpacing inflation and the need for post-secondary training in most jobs protected to grow through 2020.
Community colleges will be able to help meet that demand. But despite the fact that community colleges offer significant cost advantages, not every state offers schools of the same quality. Drawing on the findings of WalletHub of the best and worst individual community colleges in the U.S., is a state-by-state ranking of community-college systems below.
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| Overall Rank (1=Best) |
Community College |
Total Score |
'Cost & Financing' Rank |
'Education Outcomes' Rank |
'Career Outcomes' Rank |
| 21 |
Kauai Community College |
63.4 |
198 |
45 |
171 |
| 120 |
Kapiolani Community College |
59.18 |
342 |
170 |
96 |
| 205 |
Honolulu Community College |
57.02 |
304 |
116 |
336 |
| 247 |
Windward Community College |
55.94 |
270 |
308 |
459 |
| 336 |
Hawaii Community College |
53.3 |
284 |
219 |
645 |
| 361 |
Leeward Community College |
52.6 |
349 |
272 |
450 |
2019’s Best & Worst Community Colleges
From Wallet Hub, August 19, 2019
Cost is often a major consideration when choosing a college. And with tuition rates continuing to rise every year — not to mention all the other expenses related to attendance — many would-be students are unable to afford a university education.
Community colleges offer students the ability to get higher education without having as much financial strain. During the 2018 to 2019 academic year, tuition and fees for full-time, in-state enrollment at a public two-year college averaged $3,660 per year versus $10,320 at a public four-year institution and $35,830 at a four-year private school. Students who earn their general-education credits at a community college before transferring to an in-state public four-year university can potentially save a lot of money.
Other than serving as an affordable, and in some cases free, option for education, community colleges have a number of attractive qualities. They often provide more flexible schedules, smaller class sizes and rigorous coursework. Some even go beyond two-year programs to offer four-year bachelor’s degrees. These qualities advantages appeal especially to students who need to balance their studies with other commitments, such as family and work.
Individual community colleges, however, vary in quality and affordability. To determine where students can receive the best education at the lowest price, WalletHub compared more than 700 community colleges across 19 key indicators of cost and quality. WalletHub's data set ranges from the cost of in-state tuition and fees to student-faculty ratio to graduation rate....
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UH News: UH Community Colleges among top national systems