Associate's · La Crosse, Wisconsin

Is Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management at Western Technical College worth it?

Low confidence Low confidence: fewer than 40 graduates behind the earnings figures.

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

Pays back fast: graduates typically recover the cost in about 2.7 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $48,895; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $60,445; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $14,738; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $25k (likely $25k – $28k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $20k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in WI; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 2.7 years (likely 1.7–5.0); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: $76k (likely −$23k – $181k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $332k (likely $118k – $570k); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 36%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26