Undergraduate certificate · Downers Grove, Illinois

Is Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services at The University of Aesthetics & Cosmetology worth it?

Medium confidence Medium confidence: 40–99 graduates behind the earnings figures.

The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans

Graduates typically don't earn back the cost within 20 years, compared with the no-degree baseline.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $33,777; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $38,148; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $7,742; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $25k (likely $21k – $29k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: −$1k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in IL; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: Not within 20 years in most scenarios; Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: −$88k (likely −$138k – −$27k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: −$67k (likely −$182k – $69k); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 87%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26