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Home›Majors›Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR)
UNDERGRADUATE CERTIFICATE OR DIPLOMA · NATIONAL DEGREE OUTCOMES

Is a undergraduate certificate or diploma in Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR) worth it?

Compare cost, debt and earnings across 261 college programs with reportable data.

Personal baseline needed

$46,867 in median year-4 earnings

A credible return for this credential must start with what the student would otherwise earn. The federal data does not provide that personal baseline.

$46,867Median year-4 earnings
$17,405Average institution net-price context
$9,500Median federal debt
Use your actual price and alternative earnings before evaluating return. Model your own starting point →
Start with your decision

What do you need to compare?

WHAT THIS DEGREE PAYS

Outcomes at a glance

$46,867Typical earnings four years after completion
$45,650Average earnings five years after completion
$9,500Typical federal student debt
42thEarnings percentile among the same degree level
12,012Degrees awarded in 2024–25
257College programs reporting earnings

Degree counts come from the IPEDS Fall 2025 provisional release and cover 198 matched college records. Colleges without a match are not estimated.

A PRACTICAL READ

Four useful answers about Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR)

How much do Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR) undergraduate certificate or diploma graduates earn?

The national median is $46,867 four years after completion across reportable undergraduate certificate or diploma programs in this federal field.

How much federal debt do graduates have?

The median reported federal debt is $9,500. The figure excludes private loans and does not describe every graduate.

Does the college matter for Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR)?

Yes. The middle half of reporting programs ranges from $42,084 to $54,103 in observed year-4 earnings.

What careers are related to Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR)?

DegreeVerdict links this field to 1 displayed occupations using the official federal CIP–SOC crosswalk. Occupational wages are career context, not graduate salary promises.

COMPARE DEGREE LEVELS

More schooling changes both the cost and the outcome.

Compare the same field at each degree level with reportable data. These are separate groups of graduates, so the differences do not prove that an additional degree caused higher earnings.

CURRENT VIEW

Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma

Year-4 earnings
$46,867
Federal debt
$9,500
Programs in the comparison
261
257 report earnings →OPEN PROFILE

Associate's Degree

Year-4 earnings
$58,608
Federal debt
$17,366
Programs in the comparison
42
42 report earnings →
COLLEGE-TO-COLLEGE RANGE

Where the middle half of programs lands

Year‑4 earnings differ by college. This band shows the 25th percentile, national median and 75th percentile among reporting programs.

Median
25th percentile$42,084National median$46,86775th percentile$54,103
257 programs report year‑4 earnings.
BEFORE YOU CHOOSE

Compare price, debt and earnings together

$54,10375th-percentile year-4 earnings among reporting programs
$9,500Median federal debt across programs that report it
20Programs with earnings in the top quarter and debt at or below the median
SHORTLIST BY QUESTION

Three useful places to start

Each choice answers a different question. These are observed signals, not an overall winner.

Highest observed earnings

Perry Technical Institute

$83,230 four years after completionYakima, WA · inspect the full program →Lowest reported federal debt

Chippewa Valley Technical College

$5,500 among completer borrowersEau Claire, WI · inspect the full program →Largest recent graduating class

Century College

163 reported awards in 2024–25White Bear Lake, MN · inspect the full program →
PRICE × EARNINGS MAP

Where colleges sit for this exact degree

Move left for a lower annual college-wide net price and up for higher observed year-4 earnings.

$70,853Observed year-4 earnings$60,203
$4,647Annual college-wide average net price$27,477
All reporting colleges Lower-price, higher-earnings quadrantAxes trim the outer 5% for readability; outliers remain pinned to the chart edge. Price is institution-wide context, not exact program tuition.
Build your shortlist

Choose colleges offering this exact degree

Start with the highest-earning reported programs below, or open the full directory to search every college.

30 shortlist matchesSelect up to four · 25 shown
Search every reporting program →
WHERE OUTCOMES ARE STRONGEST

See the spread, not just the national number.

1Perry Technical Institute$83,2302Hennepin Technical College$80,0393Manatee Technical College$70,8534Northern Virginia Community College$70,7265Century College$70,6136Southwestern Illinois College$69,8937Northwood Technical College$69,7878Capstone College$67,5969St Cloud Technical and Community College$67,30710Illinois Central College$66,318

Observed year-4 earnings · top displayed records are not a universal ranking

Career outlook

Jobs this degree may lead to

Federal education-to-career links identify related occupations. They do not imply that every graduate enters the same job.

Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers$61,010 median wage409,670 jobs nationwide+10.9% projected growth through 2035 · 40,600 openings a yearTypical entry education: Postsecondary nondegree award$40,050–$95,210 typical wage range

BLS May 2025 wages and 2025–35 projections. Career figures describe occupations, not graduates of a specific college.

COMPARE NEARBY FIELDS

Similar degrees in the same subject family

These alternatives share the same broad federal CIP family and credential level. Earnings and debt use the same definitions as this page.

Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma

Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians

Year-4 earnings
$50,285
Federal debt
$11,000
337 reporting programs →Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma

Heavy/Industrial Equipment Maintenance Technologies/Technicians

Year-4 earnings
$65,611
Federal debt
$9,500
61 reporting programs →Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma

Electrical/Electronics Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians

Year-4 earnings
$43,750
Federal debt
$8,549
55 reporting programs →Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma

Precision Systems Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians

Year-4 earnings
$46,730
Federal debt
$14,344
7 reporting programs →
EXPLORE BY STATE

Where this degree has enough data to compare

State pages are published only when at least five operating colleges report year-4 earnings for this exact field and credential.

CA36 programs$50,628 average earningsFL17 programs$46,592 average earningsTX16 programs$44,517 average earningsTN14 programs$47,778 average earningsGA13 programs$48,934 average earningsOH11 programs$47,974 average earningsVA10 programs$47,849 average earningsPA9 programs$46,745 average earningsLA9 programs$42,319 average earningsPR7 programs$30,211 average earningsMI6 programs$45,313 average earningsIL6 programs$54,197 average earnings

This page keeps the field and credential level fixed. Federal categories can still combine multiple catalog programs or concentrations. Automated ROI is limited to associate and bachelor’s degrees because institution-wide annual net price is not a reliable proxy for short certificate prices. ROI is an illustrative scenario, not a federal determination.