ROI Major

Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities at Howard County Junior College District

TX · Associate's Degree · CIP 24.01

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities degree from Howard County Junior College District earn a median salary of $46,707 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in TX, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $50,713. The degree typically pays for itself in 12.5 years.

Quick Insights

Slow Burn / High Debt Risk

How this degree looks at a glance

A fast read on salary range, break-even speed, living-cost impact, and where graduates from this school usually land.

Salary Ranges

Starting Range

$34,640

Typical Career

$46,707

Top Performers

$64,584

Estimated break-even: 12.5 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$311

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $3,892. Most students can comfortably afford about a $311 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.2x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.6x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in Texas buys what costs $0.92 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

Top industries for bachelor's graduates from this school: Health Care & Social Assistance, Educational Services, Public Administration.

Where Associate's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 34.5%
Educational Services 14.5%
Public Administration 7.3%

Institution-wide industry mix for graduates, 5 years after graduation. This is not major-specific. Source: Census PSEO Flows.

5-Year Median Salary — National Purchasing Power Equivalent

$50,713

Nominal: $46,707 in Texas (COL 92.1% of national avg) · 8.6% higher purchasing power

10-Year Earnings Curve

Break-Even Timeline

How long until cumulative earnings advantage exceeds total college investment (tuition + opportunity cost vs. entering workforce directly after high school).

12.5 years to break even
Graduation 15 years

Total Investment

$155,168

4yr tuition + 4yr opportunity cost

HS Graduate Baseline

$38,792/yr

BLS 2023 median, HS diploma

View Raw Data: Median Earnings by Year
Timeframe 25th Pct. Median (50th) 75th Pct.
1 Year After Graduation $23,072 $32,267 $44,956
5 Years After Graduation $34,640 $46,707 $64,584
10 Years After Graduation $47,449 $63,332 $91,264

Source: US Census Bureau Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO), 2025 release. Earnings shown for Bachelor's degree graduates (all cohorts combined).

How We Calculate Purchasing Power

The median salary of $46,707 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in TX, which has a cost-of-living index of 92.1% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $46,707 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9210) = $50,713 National Average equivalent.

COL index source: BLS Regional Consumer Price Index & MIT Living Wage Project, 2023. Full methodology →

Career Verdict

Graduates of the Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities program at Howard County Junior College District can expect a positive earnings trajectory. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $32,267, which increases to $46,707 five years later and reaches $63,332 after ten years. When adjusted for purchasing power, the median earnings five years post-graduation equate to $50,713.36, indicating that graduates can maintain a competitive standard of living relative to national averages despite the cost of living index in Texas being slightly lower than the national average.

The primary industries that graduates enter are predominantly within Health Care and Social Assistance, with 45.0% of graduates entering this sector one year after graduation. This trend continues with 34.5% and 18.3% of graduates remaining in the same field five and ten years later, respectively. With an estimated break-even point of approximately 12.5 years compared to a high-school-only path, the return on investment for pursuing this degree appears favorable, particularly for those interested in careers in health care and social services.

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Data sources: US Census Bureau Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO). Cost-of-living index: BLS Regional CPI & MIT Living Wage Project. Cost of attendance: IPEDS. For informational use only; data may be suppressed for small cohort sizes.