ROI Major

Teacher Education, Specific Levels and Methods at Delgado Community College

LA · Associate's Degree · CIP 13.12

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Teacher Education, Specific Levels and Methods degree from Delgado Community College earn a median salary of $33,162 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in LA, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $35,928. The degree typically pays for itself in 1786.3 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

$25,865

Typical Career

$33,162

Top Performers

$43,452

Estimated break-even: 1786.3 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$221

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $2,764. Most students can comfortably afford about a $221 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 0.9x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.4x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in Louisiana buys what costs $0.92 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

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

Where Associate's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 47.9%
Retail Trade 6.4%
Educational Services 5.8%

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

$35,928

Nominal: $33,162 in Louisiana (COL 92.3% of national avg) · 8.3% 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).

1786.3 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 $20,919 $26,297 $32,655
5 Years After Graduation $25,865 $33,162 $43,452
10 Years After Graduation $28,918 $38,911 $51,495

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 $33,162 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in LA, which has a cost-of-living index of 92.3% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $33,162 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9230) = $35,928 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates from the Teacher Education, Specific Levels and Methods program at Delgado Community College experience a gradual increase in median earnings over time. One year after graduation, the median earnings stand at $26,297, rising to $33,162 five years later, and reaching $38,911 after ten years. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary equivalent is approximately $35,928.49, reflecting the cost of living in Louisiana, which has a COL index of 0.923 compared to the national average of 1.0.

The top industries for graduates primarily include Health Care & Social Assistance, which accounts for 47.9% of employment, followed closely by another segment of Health Care & Social Assistance at 44.3%, and Retail Trade at 10.1%. Given the estimated break-even point of approximately 1,786.3 years compared to a high-school-only path, the return on investment for this educational path appears limited. This suggests that while there are opportunities in these sectors, the financial benefits may not justify the time and resources spent on obtaining a degree in this field.

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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.