Military Systems and Maintenance Technology at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach

The extremely small sample size here—this is one of only three programs nationwide—makes it nearly impossible to draw confident conclusions, but the numbers available suggest graduates start considerably behind national benchmarks. While $52,897 beats Florida's median (this is the only program of its kind in the state), it trails the national median by about $6,600, landing in just the 5th percentile nationally. That's a meaningful gap when you're entering a specialized technical field.

The debt load of $25,625 is actually modest in absolute terms, which helps explain the reasonable 0.48 debt-to-earnings ratio. However, it's still higher than the national median for this program, and combined with below-average earnings, it creates an odd value proposition: you're paying more to earn less than the typical graduate in this field. For a military maintenance program at an aviation-focused university, you'd expect stronger connections to high-paying defense contractors or military positions that would justify the premium.

Given the small cohort size, these numbers could easily swing dramatically year to year. If your child is passionate about military aviation systems specifically and values Embry-Riddle's aerospace ecosystem, the program might work. But purely from an ROI perspective, starting $6,600 below the national median in a three-school field should prompt serious questions about whether this specific path delivers competitive career outcomes.