Here is a report from the U.S. Department of Education on college enrollments for recent high-school graduates, particularly community college numbers. Fully 63 percent of them went directly into college, around one-third of them going to community college. By 2007, there were 1,092 community colleges in the U.S., and in 2006 they enrolled 6.2 million students (a slight drop from the 2002 high of 6.3 million).
Tuition at community colleges for full-time, in-state students averaged $2,017 per year. At four-year colleges, it averaged $5,685.
For students who went into four-year public colleges, 19 percent took at least one remedial education course in their first year. At four-year private colleges, the number dropped to 15 percent.
At community colleges, the remediation number jumped to 29 percent. The report explains the high numbers at community colleges as a result of open admissions there along with many four-year public colleges no longer offering remedial course work—in effect, farming out remediation to the two-year institutions (95% of community colleges have open admissions).
It also suggests that the remediation figures are low. The data came from students themselves, and some of them may not have realized the courses they took were, in fact, remedial courses. Also, the report didn’t ask about second-year course taking, only first-year course taking.
Finally, 45 percent of students beginning community college in 03-04 were no longer in school in 06 and had not earned a degree or certificate. Forty percent were still enrolled without yet having earned a degree or certificate, while 17 percent had done so.
