How does the estimated 10-year financial return of an associate degree vary across Hawaiʻi’s community colleges?
Workforce Understory Episode: Episode Two — Understanding Underemployment
Geography: Statewide
Topic: Associate-degree value, return on investment, geography, and equitable access
The takeaway
The estimated 10-year financial return of an associate degree varies substantially across Hawaiʻi’s community colleges.
Kapiʻolani Community College has the highest estimated return, at approximately $267,000, followed by Honolulu Community College at $257,000 and Leeward Community College at $234,000.
University of Hawaiʻi Maui College and Hawaiʻi Community College have the lowest estimated returns among the institutions shown, at approximately $190,000 and $193,000.
The three highest estimated associate-degree returns belong to Oʻahu-based community colleges, while the Neighbor Island campuses shown have substantially lower returns.
What this visualization shows
This visualization compares the estimated 10-year return on investment of associate degrees earned at selected University of Hawaiʻi community colleges.
Associate degrees are often presented as affordable and accessible pathways into skilled employment, continued education, and economic mobility. But the comparison shows that the estimated financial value of those degrees differs considerably across institutions.
The three strongest returns belong to Kapiʻolani, Honolulu, and Leeward Community Colleges. By comparison, the estimated returns associated with University of Hawaiʻi Maui College and Hawaiʻi Community College are more than $60,000 lower than the highest-performing institution over the same 10-year period.
Several factors may contribute to these differences. Oʻahu campuses may offer a different mix of academic programs, stronger connections to large employers, access to a broader labor market, or pathways into occupations with higher wages. Tuition, completion rates, transfer patterns, and the cost of earning a degree may also affect the estimated return.
The visualization does not establish that geography alone causes the difference. Institution-wide averages can conceal substantial variation among programs and students.
Still, the consistent separation between the Oʻahu and Neighbor Island campuses raises an important question about whether place shapes the economic value students can realize from the same general type of credential.
Why this matters
Community colleges play a central role in Hawaiʻi’s workforce system. They provide relatively affordable and locally accessible education for recent high school graduates, working adults, career changers, and students who may not be able to pursue a four-year degree.
For many Neighbor Island residents, the local community college may be the only postsecondary institution they can attend without relocating.
That makes differences in estimated return especially consequential.
A student on Hawaiʻi Island or Maui may complete an associate degree successfully but enter a smaller labor market with fewer employers, a narrower range of occupations, or lower wages than a graduate on Oʻahu. Even when the educational experience is strong, the local economy may offer fewer opportunities to convert that credential into higher earnings.
The difference could also reflect the programs available at each campus. Oʻahu institutions may offer more pathways connected to high-demand healthcare, technical, business, or skilled-trade occupations, while Neighbor Island campuses may be constrained by smaller enrollment, limited employer demand, or the cost of sustaining specialized programs.
This evidence invites Hawaiʻi to ask:
How can students across every island gain access to associate-degree pathways that produce strong and lasting economic value?
Evidence:
Questions this visualization helps answer
Which community colleges have the highest estimated associate-degree returns?
How large is the difference between the highest- and lowest-return institutions shown?
How do estimated outcomes at Oʻahu campuses compare with those at Neighbor Island campuses?
Does an associate degree generate the same economic value regardless of where it is earned?
Which institutions appear to connect associate-degree graduates most successfully with higher earnings?
Curiosity:
Questions this visualization raises
Why do Oʻahu-based community colleges consistently show higher estimated returns than the Neighbor Island campuses included?
How much of the difference is explained by the academic programs offered at each institution?
Which individual associate-degree programs produce the strongest returns?
Do graduates from the same field earn different wages depending on the island where they work?
How much of the gap reflects differences in employer demand, occupation mix, or opportunities for advancement?
Are Neighbor Island graduates more likely to enter industries with lower prevailing wages?
How do completion rates, tuition, financial aid, student debt, and time to degree affect the results?
Do graduates remain in the county where they studied, move to Oʻahu, or leave Hawaiʻi?
Are students at Neighbor Island campuses able to access high-return programs through hybrid learning, inter-campus partnerships, or shared faculty?
Could specialized programs offered on Oʻahu be adapted or expanded on the Neighbor Islands?
Are local employers involved in designing programs and creating work-based learning or hiring pathways?
How do associate-degree returns vary by family income, race, gender, age, and first-generation status?
Do students receive clear information about program-level costs, likely earnings, and local employment opportunities before enrolling?
How do these associate-degree returns compare with certificate programs, apprenticeships, bachelor’s degrees, and direct entry into employment?
Are geographic differences in associate-degree return narrowing or widening over time?
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