Blue Ridge Community College (North Carolina) Liberal Arts and General Studies (Associate's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Associate's in Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities
- Public college
- Flat Rock, NC
- About 177 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
Blue Ridge Community College (North Carolina) liberal arts and general studies graduates earn about what liberal arts and general studies graduates earn nationally, $27,747 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $12,065 in federal loans, close to the national median of $10,864. Several North Carolina programs report higher pay.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The North Carolina and national columns are the medians across all liberal arts and general studies associate's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, Blue Ridge Community College (North Carolina) graduates earn less than the national figure and about $2,718 less than the North Carolina median. Several North Carolina programs with higher debt show higher pay by the five-year mark.
Debt and first-year pay at every North Carolina liberal arts and general studies program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the North Carolina medians.
Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.
What graduates earn over time
Pay rises about 21% between the first and fifth year.
Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $128 a month, or 5.5% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
92% of graduates (36 of 39) were working in North Carolina one year after graduating. Prices in the Asheville area are about 3% below the national average, so a $27,747 salary here buys what about $28,752 buys in a typical US city.
About Blue Ridge Community College (North Carolina)
Liberal Arts and General Studies ranks 3rd of 3 associate's programs at Blue Ridge Community College (North Carolina) by first-year earnings. The others are Nursing ($62,192) and Business Administration ($37,390).
Other liberal arts and general studies associate's programs near Flat Rock
Common questions
The median graduate earns $27,747 one year after graduating and $33,468 five years after. The median across liberal arts and general studies associate's programs in North Carolina is $26,838.
The median federal loan balance is $12,065, which ranks 33rd lowest of 39 liberal arts and general studies associate's programs in North Carolina. That works out to about $128 a month over 10 years.
It depends on your other options. Debt equals 43% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 38%. Compare the cost with other North Carolina programs before deciding.
Most do. 92% (36 of 39) were working in North Carolina one year after graduating.
About this data
- Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid (grants or loans).
- Earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school. Graduates who went straight to further study are not included.
- Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
- Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of North Carolina comparisons when their main campus is in another state.
- Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
- School-level numbers like tuition, admission rate, and graduation rate are for the whole school, not the liberal arts and general studies program.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
- Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
- NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024