During the 2008-09 reporting year, Palm Beach Community College served more than 49,000 students, up about 8% from the prior year and nearly even with the most recent highs reached in 2003-04. The Lake Worth campus, with nearly 30,000 students annually, is the largest campus in terms of students enrolled.

Fall term credit and college preparatory headcount rose almost 11% to a new record high of 24,017. Spring 2009 headcount grew by more than 12%, finishing the term at a new spring term high of 23,974.

PBCC remains a diverse college in terms of demographics. Among fall term credit and prep students, about 46% were members of a minority group, and nearly three out of every five were female. Thirty-five percent of credit and prep students were enrolled full-time.

The average age of a PBCC student during the year was about 28. Associate in arts students, who make up the largest percentage of PBCC students, averaged about 24 years of age. Vocational students tend to be older, averaging 28 for AS and AAS students, 32 for postsecondary adult vocational (PSAV) and 33 for other certificates.

Of all credit and non-credit students in 2008-09, about 87% were living in Palm Beach County, while almost 9% were from Broward County. About a quarter of Boca Raton’s students came north from Broward County, while 8% of Belle Glade students commuted from Hendry County to take classes at PBCC.

About seven out of ten PBCC prior-year high school completers matriculated from a Palm Beach County high school. This, too, varies significantly by campus, as Palm Beach County high schools accounted for only half of the prior-year high school completers at Boca Raton. More than 200 students each from Park Vista, Jupiter and Palm Beach Central graduated from high school in 2008 and attended PBCC in Fall 2008 or Spring 2009. Students with GEDs accounted for about 5% of PBCC's prior-year completers.

PBCC generated almost 19,000 fundable full-time equivalents (FTE) from over 560,000 student semester hours and credit hour equivalents during the 2008-09 year, an increase of about 11% over the previous year. The increase was driven by gains in advanced & professional, college preparatory and PSAV. The Lake Worth campus accounted for more than half (52%) of PBCC's fundable FTE. Advanced and Professional categories delivered about two-thirds of the fundable total.

Almost 4,500 degrees and certificates were awarded during the year. In addition to the 2,167 associate in arts degrees awarded, PBCC also awarded more than 2,300 associate in science, associate in applied science, and vocational diplomas and certificates in more than 100 programs and tracks.

The collegewide course success rate, as defined by the percentage of students who receive grades of 'C' or higher was about 77% for credit courses and 65% for college preparatory courses. Overall passing rates were highest for off-campus classes assigned to Belle Glade and lowest at Boca Raton. About 11% of all credit and college prep course attempts resulted in withdrawals. The most common grade awarded in credit classes was 'A'; in prep classes, 'B'.