This brief profile discusses trends and statistics for American community colleges. It identifies the top five programs at community colleges as: (1) dental hygiene; (2) manufacturing process technology; (3) telecommunications/interactive information specialists; (4) physical therapy assistant; and (5) registered nursing. Other highlights include: (1) according to 1997-1998 statistics, there are 1,130 public and independent community colleges in the United States; (2) about 46% of all first-time college freshmen attend community colleges; (3) in fall 1997, more than 5.4 million students took credit courses at community colleges, while another 5 million took non-credit courses; (4) minority enrollment in community colleges rose during the 1990s, accounting for 30% of community college enrollment at the time of this report (1998); (5) more than half of all undergraduates with disabilities attend community colleges; (6) 60% of community college students are older than 21 and 16% are older than 40; (7) nearly 50% of all community college students work full time; and (8) attending community college to obtain credits for transfer to a four-year institution remains a goal for a large segment of the student population. This profile also points out that it is no longer uncommon for a person with a college degree to attend a community college for computer courses or to otherwise update work skills. (NB)