US College Programs

Vehicle Maintenance and Repair (Certificate) Programs in Michigan, Ranked by Graduate Pay and Debt

  • 5 programs report first-year pay
  • 5 also report federal debt
  • Certificate in Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

The median Michigan vehicle maintenance and repair certificate program pays its graduates $39,405 in their first year, $3,500 more than the national median. Ferris State reports the highest first-year pay ($68,791), and Baker College the lowest median debt ($5,500).

Median first-year pay$39,405National $35,905
Median pay after 5 years$50,127National $44,862
Median federal debt$11,000National $10,501
Debt-to-earnings31%National 29%

All 5 programs, ranked

Each figure is the median for the program's graduates. Programs that don't report a figure are listed last when you sort by it.

Debt and first-year pay at every Michigan vehicle maintenance and repair program

Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Michigan medians.

Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only the 5 programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.

Quick picks

Highest first-year pay

  1. Ferris State$68,791
  2. Baker College$39,719
  3. Universal Technical Institute-Canton$39,405
  4. Grand Rapids Community College$37,927
  5. Northern Michigan University$35,338

Lowest median debt

  1. Baker College$5,500
  2. Grand Rapids Community College$6,460
  3. Northern Michigan University$11,000
  4. Universal Technical Institute-Canton$21,570
  5. Ferris State$26,000

Lowest debt for the pay

  1. Baker College14%
  2. Grand Rapids Community College17%
  3. Northern Michigan University31%
  4. Ferris State38%
  5. Universal Technical Institute-Canton55%

"Debt for the pay" is median debt divided by first-year pay. Only programs that report both figures are included.

Careers this field leads to

These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to vehicle maintenance and repair, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics

$54,120

Median pay in Michigan. 22,280 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 66,200 openings a year. Typical education to start: postsecondary nondegree award.

Bottom 10%: $36,110Top 10%: $79,060

First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers

$77,810

Median pay in Michigan. 15,740 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 48,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $46,490Top 10%: $121,840

Bus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists

$61,420

Median pay in Michigan. 9,020 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 24,400 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent.

Bottom 10%: $45,240Top 10%: $81,010

Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders

$44,670

Median pay in Michigan. 7,050 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 3% from 2025 to 2035, with about 15,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent.

Bottom 10%: $35,630Top 10%: $67,800

Common questions

Ferris State in Big Rapids reports the highest median first-year pay, $68,791. Its median federal debt is $26,000.

Related pages

Vehicle Maintenance and Repair (Certificate) programs in the US, ranked223 programs by pay and debt

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.
  • 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 Michigan rankings when their main campus is in another state.
  • Medians are across the vehicle maintenance and repair certificate programs that report each figure, so the counts differ by figure. Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.

Sources

  1. U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
  2. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
  3. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
  4. NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024