Is a liberal arts and general studies degree from Hopkinsville Community College worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 34% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 38%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 10% or less. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several Kentucky programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.

Hopkinsville Community College Liberal Arts and General Studies (Associate's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: How much debt do Hopkinsville Community College liberal arts and general studies graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $9,500, which ranks 5th lowest of 19 liberal arts and general studies associate's programs in Kentucky. That works out to about $101 a month over 10 years.

Q: Do Hopkinsville Community College liberal arts and general studies graduates stay in Kentucky?

Most do. 55% (46 of 83) were working in Kentucky one year after graduating.

Associate's in Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities
Public college
Hopkinsville, KY
About 201 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Hopkinsville Community College liberal arts and general studies graduates earn about what liberal arts and general studies graduates earn nationally, $27,978 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $9,500 in federal loans, close to the national median of $10,864. Several Kentucky programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$27,97859th percentile of 728 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$37,08933% more than year one

Median federal debt$9,5005th lowest of 19 Kentucky programs

Debt-to-earnings34%Kentucky median 38%, national 38%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Kentucky and national columns are the medians across all liberal arts and general studies associate's programs that report the figure.

	Hopkinsville Community College	Kentucky	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$27,978	$27,263	$27,139
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$37,089	$35,845	$40,284
Median federal debt at graduation	$9,500	$11,758	$10,864
Debt as share of first-year pay	34%	38%	38%
Programs compared		19	728

Five years out, Hopkinsville Community College graduates earn less than the national figure but about $1,244 more than the Kentucky median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Kentucky liberal arts and general studies program

Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Kentucky medians.

Hopkinsville Community CollegeOther Kentucky programs

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 33% between the first and fifth year.

Hopkinsville Community College grads, year 1$27,978

Hopkinsville Community College grads, year 5$37,089

All Kentucky liberal arts and general studies grads, year 5$35,845

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 $101 a month, or 4.3% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (112 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	10% or less
Paying down the balance	10% or less
Paused payments (forbearance)	30–39%
In default	10% or less

The government publishes these as ranges to protect privacy. They were measured in 2018 to 2020, partly during the pandemic pause on federal loan payments, so the forbearance share may be higher than usual.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

55% of graduates (46 of 83) were working in Kentucky one year after graduating. Prices in the Clarksville area are about 9% below the national average, so a $27,978 salary here buys what about $30,763 buys in a typical US city.

About Hopkinsville Community College

In-state tuition and fees	$4,728 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$6,432 / year
Average net price after aid	$5,875 / year
Graduation rate (within 1.5 times the normal program length)	45%
Undergraduate students	1,630

Liberal Arts and General Studies ranks 2nd of 2 associate's programs at Hopkinsville Community College by first-year earnings. The other is Nursing ($65,979).

Other liberal arts and general studies associate's programs near Hopkinsville

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Hopkinsville Community CollegeHopkinsville, KY · public		$27,978	$9,500
Austin PeayClarksville, TN · public	25 mi	$30,708	$17,500
Madisonville Community CollegeMadisonville, KY · public	33 mi	$24,019	$9,218
Southcentral Kentucky Community and Technical CollegeBowling Green, KY · public	56 mi	$27,263	$10,949

Common questions

The median graduate earns $27,978 one year after graduating and $37,089 five years after. The median across liberal arts and general studies associate's programs in Kentucky is $27,263.

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 Kentucky 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

Liberal Arts and General Studies associate's programs in Kentucky, ranked19 programs by pay and debt Liberal Arts and General Studies associate's programs in the US, ranked728 programs by pay and debt All Hopkinsville Community College programs, ranked3 programs by pay and debt