Step One: Did You Know?
Whether you are new or returning to Southwestern College, we’re glad you’re here!
Selecting Southwestern College as the starting point towards your career and academic objectives is a wise decision. Did you know that community colleges are chosen as the first point of entry to post-secondary education by almost half of all undergraduate students in the United States?
Southwestern College:
- Promotes the development of essential basic skills
- Prepares students for transfer to university
- Provides career technical and workforce development
- Offers enrichment
Quick Facts about Community Colleges
- Health care: 59% of new nurses and the majority of other new health-care workers are educated at community colleges.
- Workforce training: 95% of businesses and organizations that employ community college graduates recommend community college workforce education and training programs.
- International programs: Close to 100,000 international students attend community colleges, about 39% of all international undergraduate students in the United States.
- Homeland security: Close to 80% of firefighters, law enforcement officers, and EMTs are credentialed at community colleges.
- Online education: Students at 41% of public community colleges can earn a degree entirely online and 92% of all institutions offer at least one Internet-based course.
- Earnings: The average expected lifetime earnings for a graduate with an associate degree are $1.6 million, about $.4 million more than a high school graduate earns.
*Data derived from the most current information available as of January 2008 from the
American Association of Community Colleges