ROI Major

Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services at Kaskaskia College

IL · Associate's Degree · CIP 51.08

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services degree from Kaskaskia College earn a median salary of $48,975 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in IL, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $53,350. The degree typically pays for itself in 16.7 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

$40,793

Typical Career

$48,975

Top Performers

$59,550

Estimated break-even: 16.7 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$327

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $4,081. Most students can comfortably afford about a $327 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.3x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.6x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in Illinois buys what costs $0.92 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

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

Where Associate's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 41.5%
Educational Services 10.2%
Manufacturing 8.4%

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

$53,350

Nominal: $48,975 in Illinois (COL 91.8% of national avg) · 8.9% 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).

16.7 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 $35,838 $43,598 $51,680
5 Years After Graduation $40,793 $48,975 $59,550
10 Years After Graduation $39,272 $48,852 $60,714

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 $48,975 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in IL, which has a cost-of-living index of 91.8% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $48,975 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9180) = $53,350 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates of the Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services program at Kaskaskia College experience a steady earnings trajectory, with median earnings of $43,598 one year after graduation, increasing to $48,975 after five years. However, by the ten-year mark, median earnings slightly decrease to $48,852. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary aligns with a national equivalent of $53,349.67, indicating that graduates maintain competitive earnings relative to the national average despite the cost of living in Illinois being lower than the national index.

The majority of graduates enter the Health Care & Social Assistance sector, which represents a significant portion of employment opportunities, with 49.0%, 48.4%, and 41.5% of graduates finding roles in this industry over various time frames. The estimated break-even point for pursuing this educational path compared to a high-school-only route is approximately 16.7 years, suggesting that while the initial investment in education may take time to recoup, the long-term benefits in terms of job stability and income potential in a growing field can be substantial.

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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.