ROI Major

Business Administration and Management at McLennan Community College

TX · Associate's Degree · CIP 52.02

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Business Administration and Management degree from McLennan Community College earn a median salary of $50,265 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in TX, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $54,577. The degree typically pays for itself in 11.3 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

$36,701

Typical Career

$50,265

Top Performers

$66,346

Estimated break-even: 11.3 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$335

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $4,189. Most students can comfortably afford about a $335 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.3x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.6x 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: Health Care & Social Assistance, Educational Services, Retail Trade.

Where Associate's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 42.1%
Educational Services 13.3%
Retail Trade 6.4%

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

$54,577

Nominal: $50,265 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).

11.3 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 $31,171 $41,424 $56,786
5 Years After Graduation $36,701 $50,265 $66,346
10 Years After Graduation $47,631 $61,482 $79,974

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 $50,265 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)
= $50,265 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9210) = $54,577 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates of the Business Administration and Management program at McLennan Community College can expect a steady earnings trajectory. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $42,325, increasing to $46,845 five years later, and reaching $48,487 after ten years. When adjusted for purchasing power, the median earnings five years post-graduation equate to approximately $50,863.19 nationally, reflecting a competitive salary relative to national standards, despite Texas having a cost of living index of 0.921 compared to the national average of 1.0.

The primary industries that graduates enter are predominantly within Health Care & Social Assistance, with percentages of 80.5%, 42.1%, and 23.7% across various roles. This concentration suggests a strong alignment between the program and the job market, particularly in a sector that is consistently in demand. However, the estimated break-even point for graduates compared to those with only a high school diploma is approximately 18.4 years, indicating a long-term return on investment that students should consider when evaluating their career path.

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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.