Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management at Lake Michigan College

A debt load of $12,000 for an undergraduate certificate may sound manageable, but here's the challenge: both the earnings and debt figures come from national averages of similar programs, not from Lake Michigan College's actual graduates. When a program has too few graduates to report data publicly, it's difficult to know whether this specific pathway is working for students who enroll here.

Based on comparable programs nationally, first-year earnings around $42,000 would produce a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.28—well within reasonable territory. However, similar IT management certificates in Michigan typically yield lower earnings, closer to $36,000, which would make that $12,000 debt a tighter fit. The gap between national and Michigan figures suggests that location and local employer demand matter significantly for these credentials, and Benton Harbor's tech job market may not mirror national averages.

The real concern is what isn't visible: completion rates, job placement outcomes, and whether graduates actually enter IT roles or find themselves in unrelated work. For a certificate program—which should be a focused, efficient credential—the absence of trackable outcomes raises questions about scale and effectiveness. Before committing, your child should talk directly with the program about recent graduate outcomes and have a clear plan for how this certificate connects to specific local employers or a longer-term degree path.