ROI Major

Teacher Education, Specific Subject Areas at Saint Charles Community College

MO · Associate's Degree · CIP 13.13

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Teacher Education, Specific Subject Areas degree from Saint Charles Community College earn a median salary of $43,338 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in MO, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $48,585. The degree typically pays for itself in 19.2 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

$31,599

Typical Career

$43,338

Top Performers

$50,681

Estimated break-even: 19.2 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$289

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $3,612. Most students can comfortably afford about a $289 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.1x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.6x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in Missouri buys what costs $0.89 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

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

Where Associate's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 25.5%
Retail Trade 9.4%
Educational Services 9.1%

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

$48,585

Nominal: $43,338 in Missouri (COL 89.2% of national avg) · 12.1% 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).

19.2 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 $17,882 $23,292 $29,628
5 Years After Graduation $31,599 $43,338 $50,681
10 Years After Graduation $43,047 $53,008 $58,065

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 $43,338 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in MO, which has a cost-of-living index of 89.2% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $43,338 × (1.0 ÷ 0.8920) = $48,585 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates from the Teacher Education, Specific Subject Areas program at Saint Charles Community College experience a notable earnings trajectory. Median earnings one year after graduation stand at $23,292, which increases to $43,338 after five years and reaches $53,008 after ten years. When adjusted for purchasing power, the median earnings five years post-graduation equate to approximately $48,585.2 nationally, indicating a competitive salary relative to the cost of living in Missouri, where the cost of living index is 0.892 compared to the national average of 1.0.

The primary industries that graduates enter include Health Care & Social Assistance, which accounts for 59.5% of employment, followed by Finance & Insurance at 23.7%. The estimated break-even point for pursuing this educational path versus a high-school-only route is approximately 19.2 years. This extended time frame suggests that while the initial investment in education may take time to recoup, the long-term benefits in terms of salary and job opportunities in stable industries may provide a favorable return on investment for those committed to the field.

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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.