Is the practical nursing program at Hopkinsville Community College worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 29% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 34%. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several Kentucky programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.

Hopkinsville Community College Practical Nursing (Certificate): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: How much debt do Hopkinsville Community College practical nursing graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $10,898, which ranks 9th lowest of 17 practical nursing certificate programs in Kentucky. That works out to about $116 a month over 10 years.

Certificate in Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants
Public college
Hopkinsville, KY
About 90 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Hopkinsville Community College practical nursing graduates earn less than graduates of most practical nursing programs nationally, $37,077 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $10,898 in federal loans, close to the national median of $14,730. Several Kentucky programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$37,07720th percentile of 633 programs nationally

Median federal debt$10,8989th lowest of 17 Kentucky programs

Debt-to-earnings29%Kentucky median 33%, national 34%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Kentucky and national columns are the medians across all practical nursing certificate programs that report the figure.

	Hopkinsville Community College	Kentucky	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$37,077	$31,865	$43,978
Median federal debt at graduation	$10,898	$10,898	$14,730
Debt as share of first-year pay	29%	33%	34%
Programs compared		17	633

Debt and first-year pay at every Kentucky practical nursing 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.

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $116 a month, or 3.8% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

Prices in the Clarksville area are about 9% below the national average, so a $37,077 salary here buys what about $40,768 buys in a typical US city.

The median Kentucky LPN or LVN earns $60,460, compared with a national median of $64,400. After adjusting for Kentucky prices, that pay is worth about $67,059, which puts Kentucky slightly ahead.

Careers this field leads to

These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to practical nursing, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Nursing Assistants

$38,370

Median pay in Kentucky. 23,410 people work in this job in Kentucky. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 3% from 2025 to 2035, with about 196,200 openings a year. Typical education to start: postsecondary nondegree award.

Bottom 10%: $30,390Top 10%: $46,450

Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses

$60,460

Median pay in Kentucky. 8,570 people work in this job in Kentucky. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 3% from 2025 to 2035, with about 51,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: postsecondary nondegree award.

Bottom 10%: $48,420Top 10%: $73,220

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

Practical Nursing is the only certificate program at Hopkinsville Community College that reports first-year earnings.

Other practical nursing certificate programs near Hopkinsville

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Hopkinsville Community CollegeHopkinsville, KY · public		$37,077	$10,898
Madisonville Community CollegeMadisonville, KY · public	33 mi	$26,318	$9,500
Southcentral Kentucky Community and Technical CollegeBowling Green, KY · public	56 mi	$30,338	$12,523
Tennessee College of Applied Technology-DicksonDickson, TN · public	58 mi	$42,651	$11,000

Common questions

The median graduate earns $37,077 one year after graduating. Licensed practical and vocational nurses in the Clarksville metro area earn a median of $58,260 across all experience levels.

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 practical nursing 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

Practical Nursing certificate programs in Kentucky, ranked17 programs by pay and debt Practical Nursing certificate programs in the US, ranked633 programs by pay and debt All Hopkinsville Community College programs, ranked3 programs by pay and debt