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Criminal Justice and Corrections at Northern Wyoming Community College District

WY · Associate's Degree · CIP 43.01

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Criminal Justice and Corrections degree from Northern Wyoming Community College District earn a median salary of $51,223 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in WY, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $55,019. The degree typically pays for itself in 12 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

$38,967

Typical Career

$51,223

Top Performers

$60,546

Estimated break-even: 12 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$341

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $4,269. Most students can comfortably afford about a $341 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.3x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.7x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in Wyoming buys what costs $0.93 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 38.1%
Educational Services 9.0%
Retail Trade 6.9%

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

$55,019

Nominal: $51,223 in Wyoming (COL 93.1% of national avg) · 7.4% 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).

12 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 $22,939 $33,710 $47,750
5 Years After Graduation $38,967 $51,223 $60,546
10 Years After Graduation $52,165 $61,198 $76,015

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 $51,223 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in WY, which has a cost-of-living index of 93.1% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $51,223 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9310) = $55,019 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates from the Criminal Justice and Corrections program at Northern Wyoming Community College District can expect a steady increase in earnings over time. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $28,969, which rises to $41,357 after five years and reaches $52,989 after ten years. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary equivalent nationally is approximately $44,422.13, reflecting a favorable economic position relative to the cost of living in Wyoming, which has a cost-of-living index of 0.931 compared to the national average of 1.0.

The primary industries that graduates enter include Health Care & Social Assistance, which accounts for a significant 40.3% of employment, followed closely by a similar sector at 38.1%, and Mining, Quarrying & Oil/Gas Extraction at 13.7%. Given the estimated break-even point of approximately 18.8 years compared to a high-school-only path, the return on investment for pursuing a degree in this field appears reasonable. This trajectory suggests that while initial earnings may be modest, the long-term financial benefits and opportunities in growing industries can provide a solid foundation for career advancement.

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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.