Associate's · Watertown, South Dakota

Is Human Services, General at Lake Area Technical College 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: $34,303; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $39,887; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $9,736; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $32k (likely $32k – $33k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $821 a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in SD; 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: −$114k (likely −$168k – −$58k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: −$81k (likely −$192k – $52k); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 76%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26