Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies at Southwest Texas Junior College
TX · Associate's Degree · CIP 47.06
Executive Summary
Graduates with a Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies degree from Southwest Texas Junior College earn a median salary of $61,332 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in TX, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $66,593. The degree typically pays for itself in 8.9 years.
Quick Insights
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
$32,534
Typical Career
$61,332
Top Performers
$89,353
Estimated break-even: 8.9 years.
Debt-to-Income Check
$409
Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment
Typical monthly pay is approximately $5,111. Most students can comfortably afford about a $409 monthly loan payment with this degree.
Comparison Bench
This degree earns 1.6x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.8x 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, Retail Trade.
Where Associate's Graduates from This School Work
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
$66,593
Nominal: $61,332 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).
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 | $25,104 | $36,215 | $57,372 |
| 5 Years After Graduation | $32,534 | $61,332 | $89,353 |
| 10 Years After Graduation | $47,631 | $70,625 | $84,083 |
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 $61,332 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)
= $61,332 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9210)
= $66,593 National Average equivalent.
COL index source: BLS Regional Consumer Price Index & MIT Living Wage Project, 2023. Full methodology →
Career Verdict
The top industries for graduates reveal a strong alignment with sectors that are essential to community well-being, notably Health Care & Social Assistance, which employs 78.0% of graduates. Other significant sectors include Educational Services and additional roles within Health Care & Social Assistance. With an estimated break-even point of approximately 15.6 years compared to a high-school-only path, the return on investment for this program appears favorable, suggesting that students can achieve financial stability and career growth in a relatively short timeframe.
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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.