Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing at Fletcher Technical Community College

Fletcher Technical's nursing program shows strong first-year outcomes at $76,405—well above the national median and competitive with top Louisiana programs like Southern University at Shreveport ($78,352) and Louisiana Tech ($75,694). That's impressive for a community college serving a majority Pell-eligible student body. However, the debt figure is estimated at $26,618 based on comparable programs at Louisiana community colleges, so your actual borrowing could differ significantly from this benchmark.

The unusual earnings pattern here deserves scrutiny: graduates see a 19% drop from year one to year four, falling to $61,912. This is atypical for nursing, where earnings usually grow as experience accumulates. It could reflect many factors—shift differentials that new grads pursue more aggressively, subsequent career interruptions, or a data quirk from the small graduate cohort—but it makes projecting your child's earnings trajectory harder than with most nursing programs.

If the estimated debt proves accurate, the 0.35 debt-to-earnings ratio is manageable based on that strong first-year figure. But you're making this calculation with one known (solid initial earnings relative to peer programs) and one unknown (actual debt your child would incur). Before committing, get the school's current cost of attendance and typical financial aid packages for students in your income bracket—that'll give you the real number to work with, not just the state average.