Undergraduate certificate · Irving, Texas

Is Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR) at Tulsa Welding School-Dallas Campus worth it?

High confidence High confidence: 100+ graduates behind the earnings figures.

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

Pays back in time: graduates typically recover the cost in about 4 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $44,168; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: Not enough graduates to report; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $9,235; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $26k (likely $26k – $35k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $9k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in TX; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 4 years (likely 3.1–5.5); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: $21k (likely −$9k – $54k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $119k (likely $57k – $203k); Today's dollars