ROI Major

Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services at McLennan Community College

TX · Associate's Degree · CIP 19.07

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services degree from McLennan Community College earn a median salary of $37,592 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in TX, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $40,817. The degree typically pays for itself in 58.8 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

$27,165

Typical Career

$37,592

Top Performers

$44,024

Estimated break-even: 58.8 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$251

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $3,133. Most students can comfortably afford about a $251 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 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

$40,817

Nominal: $37,592 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).

58.8 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 $26,100 $33,569 $40,718
5 Years After Graduation $27,165 $37,592 $44,024
10 Years After Graduation $28,969 $42,146 $53,647

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 $37,592 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)
= $37,592 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9210) = $40,817 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates from the Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services program at McLennan Community College can expect a gradual increase in earnings over time. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $34,739, which rises to $36,427 after five years and reaches $37,012 after ten years. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary equivalent is approximately $39,551.57, indicating that while initial earnings may be modest, the long-term financial outlook remains stable, particularly when considering the cost of living in Texas.

The primary employment sectors for graduates are predominantly in Health Care & Social Assistance, with 80.5% entering this field shortly after graduation. This trend continues with 42.1% and 23.7% remaining in similar roles over the years. However, the estimated break-even point compared to a high-school-only path exceeds ten years, suggesting that while the degree may lead to meaningful employment, the return on investment in terms of earnings may take considerable time to materialize.

Compare with Another School

See how the Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services degree at McLennan Community 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.