ROI Major

Agriculture, General at West Texas A&M University

TX · Bachelor's Degree · CIP 01.00

Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Agriculture, General degree from West Texas A&M University earn a median salary of $57,341 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in TX, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $62,260. The degree typically pays for itself in 8.6 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 bachelor's graduates from this school usually land.

Salary Ranges

Starting Range

$47,214

Typical Career

$57,341

Top Performers

$68,948

Estimated break-even: 8.6 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$382

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $4,778. Most students can comfortably afford about a $382 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.5x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.7x 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: Educational Services, Health Care & Social Assistance, Finance & Insurance.

Where Bachelor's Graduates from This School Work

Educational Services 34.0%
Health Care & Social Assistance 18.6%
Finance & Insurance 6.0%

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

$62,260

Nominal: $57,341 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).

8.6 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 $32,639 $45,181 $57,427
5 Years After Graduation $47,214 $57,341 $68,948
10 Years After Graduation $58,176 $72,322 $103,697

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 $57,341 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)
= $57,341 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9210) = $62,260 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates from the Agriculture, General program at West Texas A&M University experience a positive earnings trajectory over time. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $45,181, which increases to $57,341 after five years and reaches $72,322 a decade post-graduation. When considering purchasing power, the adjusted five-year salary equivalent nationally is approximately $62,259.5, reflecting a favorable financial outlook despite the cost of living index in Texas being lower than the national average.

The top industries for graduates include Educational Services (34.0%), Health Care & Social Assistance (18.6%), and Finance & Insurance (6.0%). This diverse range of sectors indicates a broad applicability of skills acquired during the program. With an estimated break-even point of approximately 8.6 years compared to a high-school-only path, the return on investment for pursuing a degree in Agriculture, General appears to be favorable, suggesting that graduates can expect to recoup their educational expenses within a reasonable timeframe.

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

Compare with Another School

See how the Agriculture, General degree at West Texas A&M University 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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