South Central College Welding and Machining (Certificate): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Certificate in Precision Metal Working
- Public college
- North Mankato, MN
- About 75 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
South Central College welding and machining graduates earn more than graduates of most welding and machining programs nationally, $41,527 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $3,666 in federal loans, less than at 99% of welding and machining programs in the country. Strong value, but not one of the highest-paying welding and machining programs in Minnesota.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Minnesota and national columns are the medians across all welding and machining certificate programs that report the figure.
Five years out, South Central College graduates earn more than the national figure but about $5,719 less than the Minnesota median. Several Minnesota programs with higher debt show higher pay by the five-year mark.
Debt and first-year pay at every Minnesota welding and machining program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Minnesota medians.
Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.
What graduates earn over time
Pay rises about 28% between the first and fifth year.
Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $39 a month, or 1.1% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
97% of graduates (30 of 31) were working in Minnesota one year after graduating. Prices in the Mankato area are about 9% below the national average, so a $41,527 salary here buys what about $45,657 buys in a typical US city.
Careers this field leads to
These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to welding and machining, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers
$60,280Median pay in Minnesota. 9,270 people work in this job in Minnesota. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 40,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent.
Machinists
$61,140Median pay in Minnesota. 12,500 people work in this job in Minnesota. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 26,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent.
Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
$49,770Median pay in Minnesota. 6,130 people work in this job in Minnesota. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 11% from 2025 to 2035, with about 13,200 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent.
Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators
$56,780Median pay in Minnesota. 4,290 people work in this job in Minnesota. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 9% from 2025 to 2035, with about 12,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent.
About South Central College
Welding and Machining is the only certificate program at South Central College that reports first-year earnings.
Common questions
The median graduate earns $41,527 one year after graduating and $52,960 five years after. The median across welding and machining certificate programs in Minnesota is $49,342.
The median federal loan balance is $3,666, which ranks the lowest of 12 welding and machining certificate programs in Minnesota. That works out to about $39 a month over 10 years.
On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 9% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 22%. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several Minnesota programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.
Most do. 97% (30 of 31) were working in Minnesota one year after graduating.
About this data
- Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid (grants or loans).
- Earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school. Graduates who went straight to further study are not included.
- Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
- 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 Minnesota comparisons when their main campus is in another state.
- Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
- School-level numbers like tuition, admission rate, and graduation rate are for the whole school, not the welding and machining program.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
- Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
- NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024