ROI Major

Industrial Production Technologies at University of Akron (The)

OH · Bachelor's Degree · CIP 15.06

Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Industrial Production Technologies degree from University of Akron (The) earn a median salary of $88,745 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in OH, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $98,496. The degree typically pays for itself in 4 years.

Quick Insights

Solid Investment

How this degree looks at a glance

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

Salary Ranges

Starting Range

$76,816

Typical Career

$88,745

Top Performers

$105,799

Estimated break-even: 4 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$592

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $7,395. Most students can comfortably afford about a $592 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 2.3x more than the average US high school graduate and 1.1x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in Ohio buys what costs $0.90 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

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

Where Bachelor's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 21.4%
Educational Services 14.8%
Manufacturing 11.1%

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

5-Year Median Salary — National Purchasing Power Equivalent

$98,496

Nominal: $88,745 in Ohio (COL 90.1% of national avg) · 11% 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).

4 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 $54,168 $71,134 $88,223
5 Years After Graduation $76,816 $88,745 $105,799
10 Years After Graduation $85,045 $99,033 $126,300

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 $88,745 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in OH, which has a cost-of-living index of 90.1% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $88,745 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9010) = $98,496 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates of the Industrial Production Technologies program at the University of Akron can expect a favorable earnings trajectory. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $71,134, which increases to $88,745 five years later and reaches $99,033 a decade post-graduation. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary aligns closely with the national equivalent at $98,496.12, indicating that graduates maintain a competitive financial standing relative to their peers nationwide, despite Ohio's lower cost of living index.

The program's graduates predominantly enter sectors such as Health Care & Social Assistance (21.4%), Educational Services (14.8%), and Manufacturing (11.1%). This distribution suggests a diverse range of career opportunities, reflecting the program's applicability across various industries. With an estimated break-even point of approximately four years compared to a high-school-only path, the return on investment for pursuing a degree in Industrial Production Technologies appears robust, making it a viable option for students considering their future career prospects.

AI-assisted editorial analysis based on Census PSEO data. Fact-checked against source data.

Compare with Another School

See how the Industrial Production Technologies degree at University of Akron (The) stacks up against another institution side-by-side.

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.

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