ROI Major

Industrial Production Technologies at Lamar University

TX · Bachelor's Degree · CIP 15.06

Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Industrial Production Technologies degree from Lamar University earn a median salary of $103,197 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in TX, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $112,049. The degree typically pays for itself in 3 years.

Quick Insights

Solid Investment

How this degree looks at a glance

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

Salary Ranges

Starting Range

$71,972

Typical Career

$103,197

Top Performers

$150,504

Estimated break-even: 3 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$688

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $8,600. Most students can comfortably afford about a $688 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 2.7x more than the average US high school graduate and 1.3x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in Texas buys what costs $0.92 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

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

Where Bachelor's Graduates from This School Work

Educational Services 30.2%
Health Care & Social Assistance 19.7%
Manufacturing 9.0%

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

5-Year Median Salary — National Purchasing Power Equivalent

$112,049

Nominal: $103,197 in Texas (COL 92.1% of national avg) · 8.6% 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).

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 $56,555 $86,330 $132,400
5 Years After Graduation $71,972 $103,197 $150,504
10 Years After Graduation $81,228 $122,505 $169,005

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 $103,197 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in TX, which has a cost-of-living index of 92.1% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $103,197 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9210) = $112,049 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates of the Industrial Production Technologies program at Lamar University experience a promising earnings trajectory. Median earnings one year after graduation stand at $86,330, which increases to $103,197 five years post-graduation and reaches $122,505 a decade later. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary aligns with a national equivalent of approximately $112,048.86, indicating that graduates can expect competitive compensation relative to their peers across the country.

The program's graduates predominantly enter sectors such as Educational Services (30.2%), Health Care & Social Assistance (19.7%), and Manufacturing (9.0%). With an estimated break-even point of roughly three years compared to a high-school-only path, the return on investment for this degree appears favorable. The combination of strong earnings potential and diverse industry opportunities suggests that pursuing a degree in Industrial Production Technologies at Lamar University can be a sound career choice.

AI-assisted editorial analysis based on Census PSEO data. Fact-checked against source data.

Compare with Another School

See how the Industrial Production Technologies degree at Lamar University stacks up against another institution side-by-side.

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.

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