-8%
Public certificate-predominant peer
10-year earnings at Big Sandy Community and Technical College are 8% below the public certificate-predominant peer median ($33.0k vs $35.7k).
Kentucky · Public · Predominantly certificates
Big Sandy Community and Technical College
Prestonsburg, Kentucky. 1,590 undergraduate students. 69 programs in the federal Field-of-Study dataset.
ANOMALY ENGINE · NOTABLE SIGNALS
Earnings, completion, debt, and enrollment anomalies at Big Sandy Community and Technical College
Short-arc shifts (recent 3-year window), peer outliers, earnings trend breaks, completion drops, enrollment cliffs, and debt-to-earnings warnings — surfaced deterministically from the federal record. Multi-decade shifts are reported separately in the Long Arc section, since 25-year tuition drift isn't really an anomaly.
-100%
3-year cohort default rate
3-year cohort default rate at Big Sandy Community and Technical College fell 100% between 2021 and 2024 (6.3% → 0.0%).
-20%
Undergraduate enrollment
Undergraduate enrollment fell 20% at Big Sandy Community and Technical College vs the 2018–2022 baseline (1.6k vs 2.0k).
-20%
150%-time completion
150%-time completion at Big Sandy Community and Technical College fell 20% between 2006 and 2009 (16.3% → 13.1%).
SECTION 01 · OUTCOMES SNAPSHOT
Big Sandy Community and Technical College earnings, debt, and completion vs. the Kentucky median
Each tile compares this institution to the Kentucky median for the same metric. Sub-line shows the comparison value, not an interpretation. Sparklines trace the federally available history.
$32,954+17% · 6→10y
Kentucky median $37,114$28,106
Treasury earnings · 6y post-entry38.4%+68% · '97→'09
Kentucky median 49.7%$6,911+256% · '97→'20
At program completion1,590-18% · '96→'24
latest IPEDS59.0%+16% · '04→'24
first-time, full-time—
latest cohort$4,656+233% · '00→'24
out-of-state $6,192SECTION 02 · EARNINGS HORIZONS
How Big Sandy Community and Technical College earnings spread, 4 to 10 years after entry
Treasury tax-record earnings for federally aided students who first enrolled at this institution. Each point is a horizon from the most-recent vintage. Single median per horizon (no p25/p75 publishing).
Earnings widen with time post-entry. Selection: federal-aid recipients only — not all graduates.Methodology →
SECTION 03 · DEBT-TO-EARNINGS
What loans cost relative to earnings at Big Sandy Community and Technical College
Annual debt service as a share of median earnings 10 years after entry, computed under federal Direct loan terms (10-year fixed at 6%). The 8% line is the gainful-employment threshold from federal regulation; above 12% has historically been considered “failing” under prior rule cycles.
Institution-wide
2.8%Median federal debt $6,911 amortized over 10 years vs. median earnings $32,954 (10y after entry).
SECTION 04 · LONG ARC
Big Sandy Community and Technical College enrollment, completion, and debt over time
Federally available history. Coverage varies by metric — IPEDS publishes some series only after 2009 and others only before.
Undergraduate enrollment.
150%-time completion rate.
Median federal student debt at exit.
+68%
Big Sandy Community and Technical College · completion · 150% rose
7.8% → 13.1%
+16%
Big Sandy Community and Technical College · retention rose
53.0% → 61.3%
+233%
Big Sandy Community and Technical College · in-state tuition rose
$1,421 → $4,728
+73%
Big Sandy Community and Technical College · out-of-state tuition rose
$3,721 → $6,432
+256%
Big Sandy Community and Technical College · median debt rose
$2,625 → $9,357
-100%
Big Sandy Community and Technical College · cohort default rate fell
23.2% → 0.0%
+35%
Big Sandy Community and Technical College · pell share rose
32.9% → 44.5%
+38%
Big Sandy Community and Technical College · earnings_median_10yr rose
$23,800 → $32,954
+38%
Big Sandy Community and Technical College · earnings_median_8yr rose
$21,200 → $29,277
+51%
Big Sandy Community and Technical College · earnings_median_6yr rose
$18,600 → $28,106
SECTION 05 · PROGRAMS
Big Sandy Community and Technical College programs ranked by 5-year earnings
Each row is one (CIP × credential) program reported by the institution in College Scorecard's Field-of-Study data. Cohort floor is 30 students; below this, federal data is suppressed.
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other$80,682Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing$68,496Electrical and Power Transmission Installers$53,561Criminal Justice and Corrections$46,379Dental Support Services and Allied Professions$33,623Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities$33,017Health and Medical Administrative Services$27,699Business Administration, Management and Operations$22,294
SECTION 06 · BY CIP FAMILY
8 Big Sandy Community and Technical College programs with earnings, grouped by field
Programs are grouped by 2-digit CIP family. Programs without reported earnings are hidden to keep the list focused.
LIBERAL ARTS & GENERAL STUDIES · CIP 24
MULTI/INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES · CIP 30
HOMELAND SECURITY & PROTECTIVE SERVICES · CIP 43
CONSTRUCTION TRADES · CIP 46
HEALTH PROFESSIONS · CIP 51
BUSINESS, MANAGEMENT & MARKETING · CIP 52
FINANCIAL OUTCOME · ILLUSTRATION
Estimate the financial outcome at Big Sandy Community and Technical College
Pick a program. Cost from Scorecard net price by family income; earnings from Treasury 5-year-post-completion median, projected forward with a Mincer age-earnings curve. The selection-bias toggle applies the Dale-Krueger shrinkage. Outcomes illustration, not a forecast — see methodology.
Shrinks the earnings premium toward the matched-applicant mean. STEM <15%, business ~40%, arts & education ~60%.
NET PRESENT VALUE
$482,624
Over 40 years, discounted 5.0%
BREAKEVEN
Year 1
First year cumulative discounted earnings cross zero
- Cost per year
- $5,893
- HS-only baseline · KY
- $33,900
- Years to complete
- 1
- CIP family
- 46
Outcomes illustration · not a forecast. Projects observed Scorecard earnings forward with a Mincer age-earnings curve under your assumptions. See methodology for the math.
SECTION 07 · SIMILAR INSTITUTIONS
Institutions similar to Big Sandy Community and Technical College in Kentucky
Picked by Carnegie sector × predominant credential level. These are not rankings — just nearest-neighbour surfaces for comparison.
CAUSAL DISCIPLINE
“Big Sandy Community and Technical College graduates earn $X” — not “Big Sandy Community and Technical College makes you earn $X”
Median earnings describe what cohorts earned. They do not describe what attending Big Sandy Community and Technical College caused. Selection effects (who admits, who enrolls, who completes) are real. We publish federal data with strict descriptive phrasing — and link the methodology where you can read about the limitations directly.