Biological and Physical Sciences at City Colleges of Chicago-Malcolm X College

Malcolm X College graduates earn $30,203 in their first year—about $4,000 more than the national median for this program and roughly $3,600 above Illinois' typical outcome. That 83rd percentile national ranking is genuinely impressive for a community college associate's degree, though it's worth noting that within Illinois, this program sits closer to the middle of the pack at the 60th percentile. Still, with debt under $9,000, the numbers work: graduates can expect to earn over three times their total debt in their first year alone.

The debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.30 is manageable by any reasonable standard, especially for the 42% of students here receiving Pell grants who might otherwise struggle to access higher education. This program costs less than a used car while delivering earnings that, while modest in absolute terms, exceed what most similar programs produce. The moderate sample size (30-100 graduates) suggests these outcomes are reasonably stable, not flukes from a handful of exceptional cases.

For families seeking an affordable entry point into science fields or a foundation for transfer to a four-year program, this represents solid value. The debt burden is light enough that graduates aren't trapped if they need to pause their education or enter the workforce directly.