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Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services at Victoria College

TX · Certificate Degree · CIP 19.07

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services degree from Victoria College earn a median salary of $31,537 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in TX, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $34,242. The degree typically pays for itself in over 10 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

$25,793

Typical Career

$31,537

Top Performers

$36,591

Break-even is not clear from the available earnings data.

Debt-to-Income Check

$210

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $2,628. Most students can comfortably afford about a $210 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 0.8x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.4x 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: Public Administration, Health Care & Social Assistance, Manufacturing.

Where Certificate Graduates from This School Work

Public Administration 22.6%
Health Care & Social Assistance 16.6%
Manufacturing 12.2%

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

$34,242

Nominal: $31,537 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).

>10 years (extrapolated) 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 $21,859 $25,977 $31,089
5 Years After Graduation $25,793 $31,537 $36,591
10 Years After Graduation $26,197 $31,905 $39,242

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 $31,537 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)
= $31,537 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9210) = $34,242 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates in Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services from Victoria College can expect a gradual increase in earnings over time. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $25,977, which rises to $31,537 five years post-graduation and reaches $31,905 after ten years. When adjusted for purchasing power, the median earnings five years after graduation equate to approximately $34,242.13 nationally, indicating that while initial earnings may be modest, there is potential for growth in real terms over the long term.

The primary industries that graduates enter include Health Care & Social Assistance, which accounts for 82.3% of employment, followed by Public Administration at 22.6%. Given the estimated break-even point of more than ten years compared to a high-school-only path, the return on investment may be considered moderate. While the field offers stable employment opportunities, prospective students should weigh the long-term financial benefits against the time required to surpass high school-level earnings.

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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.