Which Austin Community College District associate's program has the lowest debt?

Visual and Performing Arts graduates leave with a median of $10,000 in federal loans, the lowest among 28 Austin Community College District associate's programs that report debt.

How much does Austin Community College District cost?

In-district tuition and fees are $2,550 a year, and $10,590 for out-of-state students. After grants and scholarships, the average net price is $6,390 a year.

How many Austin Community College District programs report graduate pay?

One bachelor's program, 32 associate's programs, and 12 certificate programs at Austin Community College District report first-year pay, and 39 of them also report federal debt.

Austin Community College District Programs, Ranked by Graduate Pay and Debt

Public college
Austin, TX
30,189 undergraduates

College Scorecard June 2026 release

The short answer

32 Austin Community College District associate's programs report what graduates earn. Nursing pays the most in the first year ($68,125), and Arts Management the least ($22,265). The median program pays $42,189. Austin Community College District also has one bachelor's program and 12 certificate programs that report pay.

In-district tuition and fees$2,550Per year. Out-of-state $10,590

Average net price after aid$6,390Per year

Graduation rate20%Within 6 years

One bachelor's program

Each figure is the median for the program's graduates. "Rank in Texas" compares first-year pay with the same field's bachelor's programs across Texas.

Program	Year 1 pay	Year 5 pay	Debt	Rank in Texas
NursingAbout 65 graduates a year	$88,105	Not reported	Not reported	4th of 48

Some nursing bachelor's programs are for nurses who are already licensed and working (RN-to-BSN). College Scorecard counts them with programs for new students, and their graduates' pay reflects years of nursing experience, so high pay at a program here may not mean higher starting pay for a new nurse.

All 32 associate's programs, ranked

Each figure is the median for the program's graduates. "Rank in Texas" compares first-year pay with the same field's associate's programs across Texas. Programs that don't report a figure are listed last when you sort by it.

#	Program	Year 1 pay	Year 5 pay	Debt	Rank in Texas
1	NursingAbout 307 graduates a year	$68,125	$75,886	$17,481	34th of 49
2	Dental Hygiene and AssistingAbout 25 graduates a year	$60,475	$71,414	Not reported	2nd of 11
3	Diagnostic and Treatment ProfessionsAbout 95 graduates a year	$59,770	$69,067	$17,765	9th of 36
4	AccountingAbout 24 graduates a year	$58,469	$45,864	$22,215	1st of 5
5	Electrical Engineering TechnologyAbout 22 graduates a year	$51,640	$55,619	Not reported	3rd of 3
6	Drafting and Design TechnologyAbout 28 graduates a year	$50,584	$50,717	$14,000	1st of 3
7	Allied Health and Medical AssistingAbout 29 graduates a year	$49,448	$55,810	$18,457	7th of 20
8	Computer and Information ScienceAbout 165 graduates a year	$49,032	$64,718	$13,000	1st of 5
9	Medical Laboratory ScienceAbout 13 graduates a year	$48,737	$58,744	Not reported	3rd of 5
10	Environmental Control TechnologyAbout 17 graduates a year	$47,480	$56,840	Not reported	1st of 3
11	Computer NetworkingAbout 79 graduates a year	$46,969	$70,736	$12,000	1st of 6
12	Teacher EducationAbout 73 graduates a year	$46,430	$48,994	$17,785	1st of 13
13	Paralegal StudiesAbout 32 graduates a year	$46,216	$53,952	$14,125	1st of 5
14	Welding and MachiningAbout 38 graduates a year	$45,279	Not reported	$14,122	1st of 5
15	BusinessAbout 330 graduates a year	$43,267	$55,130	$12,500	1st of 12
16	EngineeringAbout 40 graduates a year	$43,183	$75,765	$15,375	1st of 1
17	Vehicle Maintenance and RepairAbout 23 graduates a year	$41,194	$50,580	$10,230	4th of 12
18	Design and Applied ArtsAbout 67 graduates a year	$40,289	$43,956	$19,939	1st of 4
19	Liberal Arts and General StudiesAbout 1,612 graduates a year	$38,436	$57,885	$15,000	2nd of 47
20	CarpentryGraduates a year not reported	$38,268	Not reported	$15,624	1st of 1
21	Hospitality ManagementAbout 9 graduates a year	$37,880	Not reported	$15,513	1st of 1
22	Criminal JusticeAbout 66 graduates a year	$37,119	$42,478	$14,255	4th of 18
23	BiologyAbout 53 graduates a year	$34,560	$56,234	$13,375	2nd of 8
24	Social WorkAbout 46 graduates a year	$34,003	$47,997	$17,922	1st of 2
25	Writing and RhetoricAbout 17 graduates a year	$33,514	$42,392	$13,967	1st of 1
26	Graphic CommunicationsGraduates a year not reported	$32,657	$42,691	$11,626	1st of 2
27	Mental Health and Addiction ServicesAbout 17 graduates a year	$31,821	Not reported	$19,185	1st of 2
28	Romance LanguagesAbout 41 graduates a year	$30,111	$45,909	$14,125	1st of 1
29	PsychologyAbout 159 graduates a year	$29,930	$37,449	$13,956	1st of 6
30	Visual and Performing ArtsAbout 74 graduates a year	$29,669	Not reported	$10,000	1st of 2
31	Radio, TV, and Digital MediaAbout 25 graduates a year	$26,951	Not reported	$12,000	1st of 2
32	Arts ManagementAbout 58 graduates a year	$22,265	$36,420	$14,375	1st of 1

Program names link to the program's own page, and Texas ranks link to the full ranking for the field. A program gets its own page when it reports both pay and debt and at least five Texas programs in the field do too.

11 more associate's programs report debt but not pay, so they aren't listed.

All 12 certificate programs, ranked

Each figure is the median for the program's graduates. "Rank in Texas" compares first-year pay with the same field's certificate programs across Texas. Programs that don't report a figure are listed last when you sort by it.

#	Program	Year 1 pay	Year 5 pay	Debt	Rank in Texas
1	Diagnostic and Treatment ProfessionsAbout 59 graduates a year	$66,380	$76,652	$11,752	3rd of 18
2	AccountingAbout 227 graduates a year	$62,261	$95,949	$21,898	1st of 5
3	Criminal JusticeAbout 22 graduates a year	$55,230	$67,046	$18,500	8th of 15
4	Practical NursingAbout 53 graduates a year	$50,186	$52,298	$11,378	8th of 37
5	Computer NetworkingAbout 245 graduates a year	$49,424	Not reported	$15,729	2nd of 3
6	Fire ScienceAbout 37 graduates a year	$47,024	$57,562	$11,375	3rd of 5
7	Environmental Control TechnologyAbout 101 graduates a year	$46,623	Not reported	Not reported	1st of 4
8	Drafting and Design TechnologyAbout 51 graduates a year	$45,343	Not reported	$10,500	1st of 2
9	Vehicle Maintenance and RepairAbout 142 graduates a year	$40,720	Not reported	$11,000	4th of 16
10	Welding and MachiningAbout 125 graduates a year	$39,261	$49,732	$15,818	5th of 20
11	American Sign LanguageAbout 31 graduates a year	$38,995	$34,916	$8,999	1st of 1
12	Real EstateAbout 72 graduates a year	$36,939	Not reported	$9,500	1st of 2

4 more certificate programs report debt but not pay, so they aren't listed.

Quick picks: associate's programs

Highest first-year pay

Nursing$68,125
Dental Hygiene and Assisting$60,475
Diagnostic and Treatment Professions$59,770
Accounting$58,469
Electrical Engineering Technology$51,640

Lowest median debt

Visual and Performing Arts$10,000
Vehicle Maintenance and Repair$10,230
Graphic Communications$11,626
Computer Networking$12,000
Radio, TV, and Digital Media$12,000

Largest programs

Liberal Arts and General StudiesAbout 1,612 graduates a year
BusinessAbout 330 graduates a year
NursingAbout 307 graduates a year
Computer and Information ScienceAbout 165 graduates a year
PsychologyAbout 159 graduates a year

Common questions

Nursing graduates earn a median of $68,125 in their first year, the most of 32 Austin Community College District associate's programs that report pay.

About this data

Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid, and earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school.
Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
Tuition, net price, graduation rate, and admission rate are for the whole school, not one program.
Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of Texas rankings when their main campus is in another state.
Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago.

Sources

U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
NCES, IPEDS tuition and fees, 2023-24, for in-district tuition labels