Peer Colleges
2025-26 Update: During the 2025–26 academic year, the College is revising both national and regional peer college lists to ensure they reflect current institutional characteristics and priorities. The lists below will be updated once that process is complete.
Portland Community College, in alignment with the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities standards, selects both national and regional peer colleges. These peer groups enable the College to present student success outcomes in the context of and in comparison to similar institutions.
National Peers
The college’s National Peer Group consists of *ten colleges identified as being similar to PCC with regard to enrollment (size), highest degree offered (Associate’s degree), degree of urbanization (large city) and several other identifiers also reported in IPEDS.
| College Name | Fall 2022 Enrollment |
|---|---|
| Salt Lake Community College (SLCC) | 26,300 |
| El Paso Community College (EPCC) | 24,398 |
| Columbus State Community College (CSCC) | 25,129 |
| City College of San Francisco (CCSF) | 16,134 |
| Portland Community College (PCC) | 19,400 |
| Suffolk County Community College (SCCC) | 20,014 |
| College of DuPage (CDP) | 21,939 |
| Central New Mexico Community College (CNMC) | 19,095 |
| Des Moines Area Community College (DMCC) | 21,637 |
| Cuyahoga Community College District (CCCD) | 15,764 |
| Wake Technical Community College (WTCC) | 21,551 |
Regional Peers
The Regional Peer Group consists of six institutions located in the western region of the United States. These colleges are similar to PCC in some regards although the four Oregon community colleges are notably smaller in size.
| College Name | Fall 2022 Enrollment |
|---|---|
| Salt Lake Community College (SLCC) | 26,300 |
| Portland Community College (PCC) | 19,400 |
| Sacramento City College (SCC) | 17,719 |
| Chemeketa Community College (CHCC) | 7,642 |
| Lane Community College (LCC) | 6,745 |
| Mt. Hood Community College (MCCC) | 6,012 |
| Clackamas Community College (CLCC) | 4,638 |
*San Jancinto Community College and Hillsborough Community College now offer baccalaureate degrees and are no longer included as national peers.
The methodology and iterative process followed to select the original institutions for consideration as peer status are available to PCC employees in IE Spaces.