Associate's · Watertown, South Dakota

Is Construction Engineering Technology/Technician at Lake Area Technical College worth it?

Low confidence Low confidence: fewer than 40 graduates behind the earnings figures.

The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans

Pays back fast: graduates typically recover the cost in about 1.3 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: Not enough graduates to report; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $77,578; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $11,083; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $32k (likely $32k – $33k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $38k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in SD; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 1.3 years (likely 0.9–2.2); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: $271k (likely $120k – $435k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $691k (likely $394k – $1.07M); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 76%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26