Graduate certificate · Boone, North Carolina

Is Special Education and Teaching at Appalachian State University worth it?

Low confidence Low confidence: fewer than 40 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: $50,088; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $51,051; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $16,500; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Typical borrowing (no graduate net price is published): $17k (likely $17k – $17k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: −$9k a year vs bachelor's graduates 4 years out in NC; 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: −$190k (likely −$277k – −$93k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: −$309k (likely −$483k – −$114k); Today's dollars

Scorecard reports no net price for graduate programs; cost is based on what graduates typically borrowed.