Which Pennsylvania vehicle maintenance and repair program has the lowest debt?

Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology reports the lowest median federal debt, $10,458, with first-year pay of $35,020.

How much do vehicle maintenance and repair graduates earn in Pennsylvania?

The median across 8 Pennsylvania vehicle maintenance and repair associate's programs is $38,008 in the first year after graduating and $53,864 five years after.

How many vehicle maintenance and repair associate's programs are in Pennsylvania?

8 Pennsylvania programs report first-year pay for their graduates, and 7 of them also report federal debt.

Vehicle Maintenance and Repair (Associate's) Programs in Pennsylvania, Ranked by Graduate Pay and Debt

8 programs report first-year pay
7 also report federal debt
Associate's in Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

The median Pennsylvania vehicle maintenance and repair associate's program pays its graduates $38,008 in their first year, $5,424 less than the national median. Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics reports the highest first-year pay ($52,407), and Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology the lowest median debt ($10,458).

Median first-year pay$38,008National $43,432

Median pay after 5 years$53,864National $52,420

Median federal debt$12,000National $12,000

Debt-to-earnings31%National 27%

All 8 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.

#	School	Year 1 pay	Year 5 pay	Debt	Debt to pay
1	Pittsburgh Institute of AeronauticsWest Mifflin · private nonprofit	$52,407	$64,861	$16,163	31%
2	Pennsylvania College of TechnologyWilliamsport · public	$50,519	$62,087	$12,000	24%
3	Rosedale Technical CollegePittsburgh · private nonprofit	$42,112	$49,907	$12,000	28%
4	Johnson CollegeScranton · private nonprofit	$38,507	$60,866	$12,000	31%
5	New Castle School of TradesNew Castle · private for-profit	$37,509	$40,278	$11,470	31%
6	Thaddeus Stevens College of TechnologyLancaster · public	$35,020	$47,791	$10,458	30%
7	Pennco Tech-BristolBristol · private for-profit	$34,100	$34,619	$20,166	59%
8	Northampton County Area Community CollegeBethlehem · public	$33,081	$65,626	Not reported	Not reported

Northampton County Area Community College reports pay but not debt, so it is ranked only by pay.

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

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

Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only the 7 programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.

Quick picks

Highest first-year pay

Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics$52,407
Pennsylvania College of Technology$50,519
Rosedale Technical College$42,112
Johnson College$38,507
New Castle School of Trades$37,509

Lowest median debt

Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology$10,458
New Castle School of Trades$11,470
Pennsylvania College of Technology$12,000
Rosedale Technical College$12,000
Johnson College$12,000

Lowest debt for the pay

"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

$49,800

Median pay in Pennsylvania. 29,400 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. 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%: $35,600Top 10%: $77,630

First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers

$79,400

Median pay in Pennsylvania. 20,220 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. 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%: $50,900Top 10%: $120,850

Bus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists

$61,740

Median pay in Pennsylvania. 12,630 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. 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%: $45,910Top 10%: $80,440

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

$48,340

Median pay in Pennsylvania. 6,790 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. 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%: $37,110Top 10%: $69,920

Common questions

Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics in West Mifflin reports the highest median first-year pay, $52,407. Its median federal debt is $16,163.

Vehicle Maintenance and Repair (Associate's) programs in the US, ranked130 programs by pay and debt Vehicle Maintenance and Repair (Certificate) programs in Pennsylvania, ranked8 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 Pennsylvania rankings when their main campus is in another state.
Medians are across the vehicle maintenance and repair associate's 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

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
NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024