ROI Major

Health and Medical Administrative Services at City Colleges of Chicago - Wilbur Wright College

IL · Certificate Degree · CIP 51.07

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Health and Medical Administrative Services degree from City Colleges of Chicago - Wilbur Wright College earn a median salary of $57,688 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in IL, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $62,841. The degree typically pays for itself in 9.7 years.

Quick Insights

Slow Burn / High Debt Risk

How this degree looks at a glance

A fast read on salary range, break-even speed, living-cost impact, and where graduates from this school usually land.

Salary Ranges

Starting Range

$40,580

Typical Career

$57,688

Top Performers

$80,986

Estimated break-even: 9.7 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$385

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $4,807. Most students can comfortably afford about a $385 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.5x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.7x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in Illinois buys what costs $0.92 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

Top industries for bachelor's graduates from this school: Health Care & Social Assistance, Public Administration, Retail Trade.

Where Certificate Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 38.7%
Public Administration 8.0%
Retail Trade 7.2%

Institution-wide industry mix for graduates, 5 years after graduation. This is not major-specific. Source: Census PSEO Flows.

5-Year Median Salary — National Purchasing Power Equivalent

$62,841

Nominal: $57,688 in Illinois (COL 91.8% of national avg) · 8.9% higher purchasing power

10-Year Earnings Curve

Break-Even Timeline

How long until cumulative earnings advantage exceeds total college investment (tuition + opportunity cost vs. entering workforce directly after high school).

9.7 years to break even
Graduation 15 years

Total Investment

$155,168

4yr tuition + 4yr opportunity cost

HS Graduate Baseline

$38,792/yr

BLS 2023 median, HS diploma

View Raw Data: Median Earnings by Year
Timeframe 25th Pct. Median (50th) 75th Pct.
1 Year After Graduation $34,173 $50,245 $70,698
5 Years After Graduation $40,580 $57,688 $80,986
10 Years After Graduation $34,840 $54,051 $73,728

Source: US Census Bureau Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO), 2025 release. Earnings shown for Bachelor's degree graduates (all cohorts combined).

How We Calculate Purchasing Power

The median salary of $57,688 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in IL, which has a cost-of-living index of 91.8% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $57,688 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9180) = $62,841 National Average equivalent.

COL index source: BLS Regional Consumer Price Index & MIT Living Wage Project, 2023. Full methodology →

Career Verdict

Graduates of the Health and Medical Administrative Services program at City Colleges of Chicago - Wilbur Wright College experience a varied earnings trajectory. One year after graduation, median earnings stand at $50,245, increasing to $57,688 five years post-graduation. However, by the ten-year mark, median earnings slightly decline to $54,051. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary reflects a national equivalent of approximately $62,840.96, indicating that while initial earnings are promising, long-term financial growth may be less stable.

The majority of graduates enter the Health Care & Social Assistance sector, with 59.8% employed in this field one year after graduation. This trend continues, with substantial percentages remaining in the same industry five and ten years later. The estimated break-even point compared to a high-school-only path is approximately 9.7 years, suggesting that while the program offers a viable career path, students should consider the time investment relative to potential earnings. Overall, the return on investment appears moderate, with strong industry demand but fluctuating long-term salary prospects.

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See how the Health and Medical Administrative Services degree at City Colleges of Chicago - Wilbur Wright College stacks up against another institution side-by-side.

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Data sources: US Census Bureau Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO). Cost-of-living index: BLS Regional CPI & MIT Living Wage Project. Cost of attendance: IPEDS. For informational use only; data may be suppressed for small cohort sizes.