ROI Major

Legal Support Services at Horry - Georgetown Technical College

SC · Associate's Degree · CIP 22.03

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Legal Support Services degree from Horry - Georgetown Technical College earn a median salary of $39,425 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in SC, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $41,413. The degree typically pays for itself in 48.1 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

$29,673

Typical Career

$39,425

Top Performers

$48,648

Estimated break-even: 48.1 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$263

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $3,285. Most students can comfortably afford about a $263 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.0x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.5x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in South Carolina buys what costs $0.95 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

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

Where Associate's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 38.7%
Public Administration 8.5%
Accommodation & Food Services 8.3%

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

$41,413

Nominal: $39,425 in South Carolina (COL 95.2% of national avg) · 5% 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).

48.1 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 $26,659 $34,693 $43,588
5 Years After Graduation $29,673 $39,425 $48,648
10 Years After Graduation $31,171 $42,746 $56,069

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 $39,425 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in SC, which has a cost-of-living index of 95.2% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $39,425 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9520) = $41,413 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates of the Legal Support Services program at Horry - Georgetown Technical College can expect a gradual increase in earnings over time. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $34,693, rising to $39,425 after five years, and reaching $42,746 after ten years. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary equivalent nationally is approximately $41,412.82, reflecting a competitive position within the job market, particularly given the cost of living index for South Carolina at 0.952 compared to the national average of 1.0.

The primary industries that graduates enter are predominantly within Health Care & Social Assistance, with 60.3% of graduates working in this sector. This indicates a strong alignment between the program and the job market's needs. However, the estimated break-even point compared to a high-school-only path is approximately 48.1 years, suggesting that while there are opportunities for growth, the return on investment may take a significant amount of time to realize. Overall, students should weigh the long-term financial implications against their career aspirations when considering this pathway.

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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.