Community College Bachelor’s Degrees in Florida

In the late 1990s, Florida faced a significant challenge, ranking among the lowest states in producing baccalaureate degrees per capita. The traditional bachelor’s pathways provided by the state’s universities were insufficient in addressing mounting education and workforce needs. In response, Florida’s educational leaders and legislators sought innovative solutions to boost bachelor’s degree attainment rates, and in 2001, the state authorized its community colleges to confer bachelor’s degrees.

The primary objective of the Florida College System was twofold: first, to tackle the shortage of qualified professionals in critical fields like teaching and nursing; and second, to improve access to further education for nontraditional students. Community colleges tend to enroll a diverse student body, and expanding four-year degree programs to these institutions could be key in bridging gaps in education opportunities that often exist within public and private four-year institutions.

Florida’s community college bachelors (CCB) programs fulfilled a vital role by providing students with affordable and localized pathways to higher education, while also meeting the demands of industries requiring a highly skilled workforce. Community colleges opting to introduce baccalaureate programs undertook the responsibility of demonstrating a substantial “workforce demand and unmet need” for graduates of their proposed programs. This requirement ensured that each program was tied to the economic imperatives of the state and its local communities—a crucial consideration, given more severe labor shortages faced by the state.

Today, all 28 of Florida’s public community colleges offer at least one baccalaureate program, spanning disciplines from applied health sciences to digital media and elementary education. In our sample spanning 10 years of data, the system had awarded over 75,000 bachelor’s degrees.

As Florida approaches its third decade of CCB authorization, understanding the state’s CCB context can offer valuable insights as more states and institutions contemplate CCB adoption. This brief follows a 2020 report on Florida CCBs and aims to provide an updated look at enrollment and graduation trends within the state’s CCB programs. We examine demographic characteristics including race/ethnicity, age, and gender across program areas, culminating in an analysis of labor market outcomes.

• CCB students are considerably older than their university counterparts, since more than half of CCB graduates are over the age of 30. However, there are more younger students pursuing and earning their bachelor’s degree than before.
• Business is the most popular CCB program, enrolling over half of all CCB students. While few new nursing and computer science programs have emerged in recent years, there is a substantial trend of increasing enrollment and graduation rates in these fields.
• Students of color represent a growing share of CCB graduates, but more enrollment is needed to ensure that students in these programs more closely reflect Florida’s population. In particular, Latinx graduates remain underrepresented in CCB programs.
• Median wages three years after graduation are $51,520, with considerable variation by demographic group and area of study. CCB graduates are more likely to enter higher-paying sectors than bachelor’s degree holders from State University System of Florida (SUS) institutions. However, when comparing wages within similar areas of study, SUS graduates typically earn more, except in nursing.

CCBs are designed to serve as an educational access point for students, offering affordability while connecting them to in-demand careers. Given Florida’s long-standing CCB policy—one of the most expansive and oldest in the country—understanding some of the features of these programs can provide valuable insights into where the state is creating new pathways through these programs and where there is room for growth and improvement. Several questions guided this analysis:

1. What are the demographics of Florida CCB students? In what areas of study are students enrolled?
2. What are the demographic characteristics of Florida CCB graduates? In what areas of study do we find graduates?
3. What are the employment and wage outcomes of Florida CCB graduates, and how do wages vary by demographic group?

To address these questions, we used aggregate data on CCB students and graduates from academic years 2011–2012 to 2021–2022 from the Florida Department of Education in response to our data request. These data include age group, gender, and race/ethnicity by area of study and year for enrolled students and these same demographic characteristics, as well as employment status and median wages by area of study and year, for CCB graduates. We used these data for a descriptive analysis. To contextualize Florida’s history of CCB policy and program development, we consulted the publicly available current list of available bachelor’s programs in the Florida College System. In the sections below, we offer a look at the landscape of bachelor’s programs at Florida community colleges and the students and graduates who have taken this route to pursue a bachelor’s degree in the Sunshine State.

In 2001, Florida became one of the first states to embrace CCBs when St. Petersburg College began offering bachelor’s degrees in nursing, education, and information sciences. Chipola College and Miami-Dade College followed suit, introducing their own education programs the following year. Because of the critical teaching shortage in Florida at the time, Figure 1 illustrates the concentration of the earliest CCB programs in education.

The next major shift in CCB policy came in 2008, when state legislation transformed the Florida Community College System into the Florida College System (FCS). This move aimed to maximize open access to associate and baccalaureate degrees because CCBs were lower cost than providing the degree at a State University System of Florida (SUS) institution. It also laid out a program approval process for new bachelor’s degree programs; while CCB programs must still meet the employment needs of Florida, they were no longer limited to proposals designed to meet regional workforce needs. This shift resulted in many new program offerings, ranging from environmental science to paralegal studies. In the first decade of Florida CCBs, 21 out of 28 FCS institutions offered a bachelor’s program.

However, the rapid CCB expansion has not been without challenges. CCBs have not avoided criticism of mission creep and program duplication with the state’s four-year colleges and universities. Legislation in 2012 narrowed the scope of FCS baccalaureate authority, leading to a slowdown in the creation of new programs, and in 2014, a 14-month moratorium temporarily halted the submission and approval of new proposals. Despite these obstacles, FCS institutions continue to provide many baccalaureate options for its students. Today, all 28 of Florida’s public community colleges offer at least one bachelor’s program.

With 192 programs, Florida provides nearly 40,000 CCB students with the opportunity to study a range of disciplines. Figure 2 depicts the largest CCB programs by enrollment. Over 90 percent of all CCB students are enrolled in five program areas: business, nursing, computer science, education, and health professions. The most common program among Florida CCBs is business, with 25 out of 28 campuses offering a business degree. Almost half of all students (18,292) are enrolled in a business program. Nursing is the second largest program (5,733), closely followed by computer and information sciences (4,462). Although education enrolls fewer than 3,000 students, there has been a jump in the number of approved education programs in 2021, and it remains to be seen how enrollment is affected as these programs become more established.

Among CCB students, the share of white individuals, at 47 percent, is lower compared to the 52 percent observed in the overall Florida population. However, other racial and ethnic groups closely mirror the state demographics. Our data reported that 26 percent of students were Latinx and 18 percent were Black, which is within one percentage point of the state population. According to Figure 3, students of color constitute the majority in enrollment across the most popular programs, except in education, where 54 percent of students are white. This finding accords with an ongoing racial gap in the teaching profession, where 82 percent of education majors are white. Florida CCBs can play a crucial role in expanding education access points for underrepresented students in vital fields.

Across all areas of study, women make up 65 percent of CCB enrollment in Florida, surpassing the national average of 60 percent female enrollment for community colleges. As displayed in Figure 4, women are more likely to enroll in certain CCB programs than men, and this trend is pronounced in fields such as nursing, education, and health professions, which are historically female-dominated. In our previous Florida report, education produced so few male graduates that we were unable to conduct a gender analysis. However, male enrollment has since increased, although women still make up a staggering 90 percent of education enrollees. Conversely, there is a higher representation of male students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, with men constituting 74 percent of the student body in computer science and 81 percent in engineering and engineering technologies.

Community colleges tend to attract older learners, and CCB enrollment closely aligns with this trend, with three-fourths of the students in our sample aged 25 or older. Figure 5 breaks down enrollment by age group, which varies significantly across areas of study. Students enrolled in nursing, health professions, and social services tend to be older than their peers in other subjects. For instance, 62 percent of nursing students are over the age of 30, whereas 57 percent of education students are under the age of 30.

In 2020, the slight majority of prelicensure nursing program graduates nationally earned a bachelor’s degree or master’s degree (51 percent). However, the associate degree was still the primary path into the profession for new Indigenous (62 percent), Black (59 percent), and Latinx (56 percent) nurses. Many employers continue to prefer nurses with baccalaureate-level preparation, and a bachelor’s degree may be needed for promotion or pay increases. Therefore, accessible RN-BSN programs are essential for nurses in these underrepresented groups to advance their careers. Similarly to nursing, evolving licensing requirements in social services may explain the older age of students. Unlike other states, Florida does not license social workers at the bachelor’s level, and students may choose to pursue their bachelor’s degree at a lower-cost community college to economize on their path to licensure.

In 2021–2022, Florida College System (FCS) institutions enrolled 45,624 students and awarded 10,620 bachelor’s degrees. The number of students graduating with a baccalaureate degree from Florida’s community colleges has steadily increased each year, nearly tripling in a decade. Business produces the most bachelor’s degrees, shown in Figure 6, with over 4,700 students completing their program in 2021, although the share of business graduates (43 percent) has remained stable within one percentage point across all the years of data we examined.

Nursing produces one-fifth of all graduates and represents the second-largest number of graduates, reflecting Florida’s strong demand for nurses with baccalaureate-level preparation. At the same time, technology-related fields are also growing, with computer science graduates multiplying tenfold in less than a decade. There has been a decline in the number of education graduates in recent years, despite the expansion of education programs in recent years. While the latest data cover a large jump in CCB graduates across all programs, it occurred during the pandemic’s peak, and additional research is needed to see whether these enrollment trends persist.

Figure 7 shows a growing number of students of color graduating from CCB programs. Bachelor’s programs at Florida community colleges graduate a racially and ethnically diverse group of students. In the 2020–2021 academic year, less than half (49 percent) of bachelor’s graduates in our sample were white, compared to 57 percent of bachelor’s graduates nationally.

As we found in our 2020 brief, Latinx graduates continue to be underrepresented in CCB programs, making up 24 percent of graduates but 27 percent of Florida’s population. However, Figure 7 shows this difference has narrowed in recent years, coinciding with a nationwide increase in Latinx enrollment since the height of the pandemic. The share of Black (17 percent) and Asian or Pacific Islander (3 percent) CCB graduates has remained relatively stable, reflecting the state’s population. It is also worth noting that CCB programs graduate a smaller share of Latinx graduates but a larger share of Black graduates relative to baccalaureate graduates in the State University System (31 percent and 11 percent, respectively).

As Figure 8 shows, CCB programs tend to serve an older population of students. From 2020–2021, a majority of graduates (58 percent) were over the age of 30. However, there has been a consistent decline in this demographic’s share of graduates each year.

In fact, more younger students are graduating from CCB programs. This shift became evident from 2018–2019 onward, when we observed a steady increase in the number of graduates under 25 years old. While the primary mission of FCS institutions has traditionally been to provide associate degrees as a pathway to university education, it appears that young students are increasingly viewing CCB programs as a viable option for obtaining their bachelor’s degree.

Figure 9 illustrates the fluctuation in the share of male graduates over the last decade. The peak of male graduates occurred in 2016–2017, reaching 34 percent. While this percentage has decreased in subsequent years, it still surpasses the figures observed in the earliest years of data. Overall, bachelor’s degree holders across FCS and SUS institutions are more likely to be female, however, FCS baccalaureate graduates, at 67 percent, have an even higher proportion of female students compared to SUS graduates, at 59 percent.

In our sample, 78 percent of graduates were found to be employed one year after graduation, a decrease from the 83 percent we observed in previous years. Despite this dip, the rate surpasses the employment outcomes typically reported for associate degree holders in Florida, which stands at approximately 70 percent, though employment data does not include self-employed individuals, federal employees, individuals residing near state borders working outside Florida, and those who relocated from Florida after graduation.

When breaking down employment or further education rates by area of study and race, we found differences that were less stark than those observed in our last analyses. In Figure 10, variations remained within a few percentage points. The largest outcome gap was in law enforcement, where Latinx graduates fared worse than their Black and white peers. Meanwhile, Latinx graduates in business, computer science, and public administration outperformed their peers. Nursing and education programs demonstrated the most successful employment or further education rates. This trend aligns with Florida’s increased credential expectations in early childhood education and nursing. It could be that these are incumbent employees wanting to maintain their positions or advance their careers.

Among all bachelor’s degree holders, FCS graduates outperformed their counterparts from SUS institutions. The median wages one year after graduation are $51,520 for FCS graduates and $46,500 for SUS graduates. Limitations in SUS data prevent wage comparisons beyond the first year, but breaking down earnings by sector helps put these numbers into context. Florida legislation mandates that CCB programs address critical workforce needs, with most programs concentrating on high-demand careers such as nursing or computer science. This requirement does not apply to SUS institutions, where programs span a wide array of disciplines. As a result, CCB graduates are more likely to enter career pathways that typically offer higher salaries.

When comparing the annual median salaries of FCS and SUS bachelor’s graduates in the same fields, we found that most SUS graduates initially outearn FCS graduates. Nursing, however, stands out as an exception, as depicted in Figure 11. A possible explanation is that all BSN programs in the FCS are RN-BSN programs and only available to already licensed nurses. In this context, FCS nursing students are often older and typically have more prior professional experience compared to their counterparts in SUS institutions.

Figure 12 presents the median wages three years postbaccalaureate for the most recent data available. Analyzing data at the three-year mark provides more time for CCB graduates to secure employment, gain experience, and advance in their careers. The median wage for 2019 CCB graduates after three years stands at $58,008. Again, nursing graduates earned more than their peers with a median wage of $82,148. For context, the median wage for registered nurses in Florida was $81,220 in 2022.

We also discovered substantial wage disparities across demographic groups, shown in Figure 13. When considering race/ethnicity, it is evident that Latinx graduates achieved the highest median wage, at $59,864, closely followed by white graduates, at $58,880. Black graduates earned the lowest median wage, at $52,500. The high concentration of Latinx students in urban counties such as Miami-Dade and Broward likely contributes to the higher median wages for Latinx CCB grads. However, these areas also come with higher living expenses, so it is difficult to know the implications of these findings for individuals from different racial/ethnic backgrounds in their ability to attain a family-sustaining wage.

Figure 13 also highlights large wage differences across age groups. Graduates aged 40 and older had by far the highest median wage, at $67,084. This figure is striking, given that the median household income for the state is just under $68,000. Conversely, younger graduates aged 20–24 and 25–29 earned lower median wages, at $49,960 and $48,728, respectively. These figures place younger graduates only just above the living wage for Floridians with no dependents, which is estimated at $46,645 before taxes.

Figure 14 shows a persistent gender wage gap among CCB graduates in Florida, with male graduates earning higher median wages than their female counterparts, although this difference is not as substantial as age and racial gaps. Black women face the lowest wage outcomes, with an $8,000 difference between them and female Latinx graduates, and a $12,000 difference separating them from Latinx men.

Figure 15 reveals that Latinx graduates generally earn higher wages than their Black and white peers across most sectors, marking a shift from our findings in 2020. However, there is an exception in public administration and law enforcement, where Latinx graduates earn less. Conversely, Black graduates tend to earn lower wages across most fields, except for nursing, where they outearn their white counterparts, and social services, where they surpass Latinx graduates. Further research is needed to examine the differential earnings across areas of study and racial groups.

With 24 states currently authorizing CCB programs, Florida stands out not only for its extensive history in CCB programs but also for the sheer number of CCB programs it offers. In 2021, Florida CCBs conferred nearly 11,000 bachelor’s degrees, something that was nearly unheard of when Florida first authorized a few colleges to offer these degrees in the early 2000s. In the third decade of CCB programs, Florida’s 28 colleges can continue providing affordable, local access to bachelor’s degrees, opening up new economic opportunities for graduates. The welcome that community colleges have always extended to students who are working, older, and racially and ethnically diverse positions them well to increase bachelor’s degree attainment for these frequently underserved demographic groups and support their progress toward further education. While there is plenty of room to grow, for now, the future of CCBs looks bright in the Sunshine State.

We are grateful to many colleagues who made this work possible. We thank our New America colleagues Iris Palmer, Sabrina Detlef, Katie Portnoy, Natalya Brill, Mandy Dean, Zoe Reier, and Naomi Morduch Toubman for their support throughout the writing and publication process. We are honored and grateful to have the financial support of the Ascendium Education Group to carry out this work, and we are especially thankful to our program officer, Sue Cui. We thank the Florida Department of Education, especially Jeremy Katz, for handling our data request so thoughtfully.