Cosmetology at House of Heavilin Beauty College-Kansas City

With 81% of students receiving Pell grants, House of Heavilin's Kansas City location serves a predominantly low-income population, but the earnings outcomes lag behind what these students could achieve elsewhere in Missouri. At $21,092 four years out, graduates earn about $200 less per month than the state median for cosmetology programs. That gap matters when you're trying to pay back $16,500 in debt—nearly double what students typically borrow for this credential statewide.

The program does beat national averages, landing in the 59th percentile, but Missouri has stronger options. The House of Heavilin campus in Blue Springs, for instance, sees graduates earning $23,309—over $2,000 more annually. Summit Salon Academy in the same Kansas City metro area reports nearly $28,000 in earnings. While this program's debt burden is relatively low by national standards (5th percentile), it's still higher than typical for Missouri, creating a tighter financial margin for graduates entering a field where early earnings hover around minimum wage.

The small sample size here (under 30 graduates) means one or two outliers could skew these numbers significantly. If your child is committed to attending this specific campus, the debt level won't be crushing. But with several higher-performing cosmetology programs operating in the Kansas City area and across Missouri, it's worth comparing where graduates actually land financially before committing.