ROI Major

Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science and Allied Professions at Navarro College

TX · Associate's Degree · CIP 51.10

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science and Allied Professions degree from Navarro College earn a median salary of $57,957 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in TX, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $62,928. The degree typically pays for itself in 8.1 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

$45,075

Typical Career

$57,957

Top Performers

$68,408

Estimated break-even: 8.1 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$386

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $4,830. Most students can comfortably afford about a $386 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.5x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.7x 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 29.9%
Educational Services 18.5%
Retail Trade 7.8%

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

$62,928

Nominal: $57,957 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).

8.1 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 $37,156 $46,227 $55,879
5 Years After Graduation $45,075 $57,957 $68,408
10 Years After Graduation $51,458 $81,671 $111,872

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 $57,957 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)
= $57,957 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9210) = $62,928 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates in Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science and Allied Professions from Navarro College can expect a solid earnings trajectory. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $46,227.00, increasing to $57,957.00 after five years, and reaching $81,671.00 after ten years. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary aligns with a national equivalent of $62,928.34, indicating that graduates maintain a competitive edge in terms of real income relative to the national average.

The primary industries for graduates are Health Care & Social Assistance, which accounts for 34.2% of employment, followed closely by another segment within the same industry at 29.9%, and Educational Services at 18.5%. With an estimated break-even point of approximately 8.1 years compared to a high-school-only path, the return on investment for pursuing this degree appears favorable, suggesting that graduates can expect a worthwhile financial benefit over time in their chosen 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.