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What does this major pay at different colleges?

Pick a major, a degree level and a state. You get what graduates of each college's program earned four years after graduating and what they borrowed in federal loans, from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard, with the national median for the same program as the yardstick.

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Is it worth it? The federal figures, side by side

Federal data cannot decide that for you, but it puts what graduates earned beside what they borrowed. Programs appear in the order you added them, with no ranking.

Median earnings four years after graduating, federal debt, monthly payment and peer comparisons for Horry-Georgetown Technical College HVAC Technology.
MeasureHorry-Georgetown Technical CollegeHVAC Technology, undergraduate certificate · SCRemove
Median earnings, 4 years after graduating$54,062 (47 graduates)
Federal debt borrowed at this college (median)$8,875
Monthly payment, 10-year plan$94
Payment as a share of median monthly earningsbefore taxroughly 2%
National median, same program and degree$48,148
Typical program nearbythe state, or its Census division when the state has fewer than 3 programs$47,547 (South Atlantic, 9 programs)
Total federal debt counting every college attendeda second federal measure; it includes loans from colleges attended before this one$9,500

Earnings: College Scorecard field-of-study data, 2017-19 graduates, measured 2022-23, for graduates who received federal aid, worked and were not enrolled. Debt: graduates of 2018-19 and 2019-20. The monthly payment is a standard 10-year plan on the median debt borrowed at that college. Median earnings of graduates who received federal student aid, worked, and were not enrolled in school; debt is the median federal loans borrowed at this college by graduates who borrowed (Direct Subsidized, Unsubsidized and Grad PLUS; not Parent PLUS, private loans or interest). Programs with too few graduates are suppressed by the Department of Education. College cost is not shown here; each college's profile has its net price.

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HVAC Technology, undergraduate certificate programs nationwide

Nationally, undergraduate certificate graduates in HVAC Technology earn a median $48,148 four years after graduating. Among 36 programs with federal earnings data, Perry Technical Institute (WA) graduates had the highest median, $83,230 (2017-19 graduates, measured 2022-23, College Scorecard).

Programs with data
36
Highest median
$83,230
National median
$48,148
The link opens this exact comparison.
HVAC Technology, undergraduate certificate programs nationwide: median earnings four years after graduating and median federal debt, in order of earnings.
CollegeStateMedian earnings, 4 yrs aftervs national medianDebt borrowed at this college (median)Add to the side-by-side comparison
Perry Technical InstituteWA$83,230+73%$17,146Compare
Hennepin Technical CollegeMN$80,039+66%—Compare
St Cloud Technical and Community CollegeMN$67,307+40%—Compare
Minnesota State Community and Technical CollegeMN$63,894+33%$5,500Compare
Eastwick College-NutleyNJ$63,886+33%$9,500Compare
Wake Technical Community CollegeNC$62,956+31%—Compare
Refrigeration School IncAZ$62,122+29%$8,233Compare
YTI Career Institute-YorkPA$60,748+26%$8,404Compare
Chattahoochee Technical CollegeGA$59,617+24%—Compare
Georgia Piedmont Technical CollegeGA$58,854+22%—Compare
Charter CollegeAK$57,910+20%$14,750Compare
Ivy Tech Community CollegeIN$56,064+16%$5,000Compare
Erie Community CollegeNY$55,395+15%—Compare
Chattanooga State Community CollegeTN$54,846+14%$5,500Compare
Horry-Georgetown Technical CollegeSC$54,062+12%$8,875In comparison
Delgado Community CollegeLA$52,614+9%$19,000Compare
Pennco Tech-BristolPA$52,475+9%$11,817Compare
MIAT College of TechnologyMI$52,372+9%$11,799Compare
Western Iowa Tech Community CollegeIA$51,294+7%—Compare
Metropolitan Community College-Kansas CityMO$51,184+6%—Compare
Kansas City Kansas Community CollegeKS$51,091+6%—Compare
Dallas CollegeTX$50,877+6%—Compare
Houston Community CollegeTX$49,588+3%—Compare
Palm Beach State CollegeFL$47,547about the same—Compare
Lone Star College SystemTX$47,451about the same—Compare

The 25 highest of 36 programs. Ordered by median earnings four years after graduating: one federal measure, not a ranking of program quality.

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Same major, other degree levels: Associate's

What these numbers are

Earnings: graduates of 2017-18 and 2018-19, earnings measured in 2022 and 2023, in 2024 dollars. Only programs with at least 30 graduates in the earnings cohort are listed, and a multi-state system whose figure pools campuses in several states is left out of state lists. Median earnings of graduates who received federal student aid, worked, and were not enrolled in school; debt is the median federal loans borrowed at this college by graduates who borrowed (Direct Subsidized, Unsubsidized and Grad PLUS; not Parent PLUS, private loans or interest). Programs with too few graduates are suppressed by the Department of Education. Federal program group: Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR). Earnings reflect who enrolls and where graduates work as well as the program itself.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field-of-study data, 10 June 2026. Download every program (CSV).