Somatic Bodywork at Carrington College-Tucson

The $17,068 first-year earnings from Carrington's Tucson bodywork certificate barely crosses the poverty line for a single person—and falls $2,400 below Arizona's median for this field. While the debt load is relatively modest at $9,182, that's still more than half a year's earnings for work that typically requires physical stamina and often lacks benefits. This program places in the bottom fifth nationally but middle of the pack in Arizona, which says more about the challenging economics of somatic bodywork certificates than about this particular school.

The small sample size here matters: with fewer than 30 graduates, one or two unusually low earners could significantly skew the picture. However, even comparing to the top Arizona programs—Southwest Institute of Healing Arts graduates earn $4,000 more annually—suggests Carrington-Tucson struggles to match competitor outcomes. For a family already stretched (61% of students receive Pell grants), this certificate represents a significant financial risk for returns that may not support independent living.

If bodywork is the goal, exploring programs at Southwest Institute or even Carrington's Phoenix North campus (which reports identical earnings despite the same institution) might yield better prospects. Otherwise, parents should seriously question whether certificate-level training in this field provides a viable path to self-sufficiency for their child.