UTRGV Medical Laboratory Science (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions
- Public university
- Edinburg, TX
- About 19 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
UTRGV medical laboratory science graduates earn less than graduates of most medical laboratory science programs nationally, $56,421 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $13,825 in federal loans, less than at 96% of medical laboratory science programs in the country. Debt is low, but pay is also below the Texas median of $61,461.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Texas and national columns are the medians across all medical laboratory science bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, UTRGV graduates earn less than the national figure and about $12,494 less than the Texas median. Several Texas programs with higher debt show higher pay by the five-year mark.
Debt and first-year pay at every Texas medical laboratory science program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Texas 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 is about the same in 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 $147 a month, or 3.1% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.
The government publishes these as ranges to protect privacy. They were measured in 2018 to 2020, partly during the pandemic pause on federal loan payments, so the forbearance share may be higher than usual.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
92% of graduates (23 of 25) were working in Texas one year after graduating. Prices in the McAllen area are about 14% below the national average, so a $56,421 salary here buys what about $65,686 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 medical laboratory science, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians
$59,290Median pay in Texas. 29,530 people work in this job in Texas. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 3% from 2025 to 2035, with about 20,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Phlebotomists
$40,450Median pay in Texas. 12,820 people work in this job in Texas. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 18,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: postsecondary nondegree award.
Surgical Technologists
$65,220Median pay in Texas. 10,160 people work in this job in Texas. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 7,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: postsecondary nondegree award.
Medical Equipment Preparers
$46,970Median pay in Texas. 4,520 people work in this job in Texas. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 11% from 2025 to 2035, with about 10,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent.
About UTRGV
Medical Laboratory Science ranks 4th of 37 bachelor's programs at UTRGV by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($77,619), Mechanical Engineering ($60,924), and Computer Engineering ($57,841).
Common questions
The median graduate earns $56,421 one year after graduating and $56,240 five years after. The median across medical laboratory science bachelor's programs in Texas is $61,461.
The median federal loan balance is $13,825, which ranks the lowest of 8 medical laboratory science bachelor's programs in Texas. That works out to about $147 a month over 10 years.
On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 25% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 39%. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several Texas programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.
Most do. 92% (23 of 25) were working in Texas 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 Texas 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 medical laboratory science 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