Community colleges

Community Colleges in Hawaii

CampusPin classifies 7 of Hawaii's 17 colleges as community (two-year) colleges, about 41.2% of the state's institutions. Community colleges are the most affordable on-ramp to higher education, with a median published in-state tuition of $3,209 in this snapshot.

Hawaii community colleges by the numbers

Community colleges
7
Share of state colleges
41.2%
Median published in-state tuition
$3,209
National public 2-year median
$4,288
Lowest published tuition
Honolulu Community College ($3,174)

Counts and shares come from CampusPin's committed institution-distribution snapshot; the tuition median is the published in-state figure from the tuition-by-state snapshot. Those cover every community college in the state. The list below covers all 7 of them. Published prices are before financial aid, net price is typically lower, and lower tuition is not a measure of quality.

What work without a bachelor's degree pays in Hawaii

72% of jobs in Hawaii are in occupations the federal government reports as typically entered with an associate degree, a certificate, some college, a high-school diploma, or no formal credential. 32% of that employment pays more than $56,320, the median wage across all occupations there.

Jobs not typically needing a bachelor's
72%
Of those, paying above the local median
32%
Hawaii median wage, all occupations
$56,320
Best-paid such occupation in Hawaii
Air traffic controllers ($158,700) — typically entered with an associate's degree

These figures describe occupations, not graduates. They do not measure what community-college students in Hawaii earn, and they are not evidence that any credential caused the pay. Typical entry education is a national assignment describing what people entering an occupation usually hold, not a requirement and not a guarantee that a particular employer accepts it. A median describes everyone working in an occupation, experienced and new alike, so it is not a starting salary, and wages are not adjusted for cost of living.

How Hawaii compares with the other 50 jurisdictions

All community colleges in Hawaii

Why start at a Hawaii community college?

Community colleges typically offer open or less-selective admission, the lowest published tuition of any sector, and transfer pathways that let students complete lower-division coursework before moving to a four-year university. They also serve working and returning students with part-time, evening, and online options. Confirm transfer-credit and articulation agreements with each college and your target university. Because two-year colleges anchor the low-cost end of every state's mix, our cost and outcomes by state research puts that affordability in context against each state's overall medians.

Community colleges in nearby states

Data sources & methodology

Community-college counts and shares for Hawaii come from CampusPin's committed institution-distribution and tuition-by-state snapshots; the college list is compiled live from each institution's record.

Sources used across this page

Not every source informs every figure. Each data point draws on the source appropriate to it see the relevant section and the data dictionary for field-level provenance.

  • IPEDS / NCES College Navigator

    Federal enrollment, admissions, tuition, retention, and program data. Released annually with a 1–2 year lag.

  • U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

    Net price by income band, post-graduation earnings, and federal aid context.

  • Institutional websites

    Each school's official admissions, registrar, and financial-aid pages are the authoritative source for current details.

Where a value is unavailable it is shown as unavailable, never as 0, free, or a negative judgment. Always confirm final details with the institution before applying.

Suggested citation

CampusPin. Community Colleges in Hawaii. Retrieved from https://campuspin.com/community-colleges-in/hawaii