Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions at Midwestern Career College

Midwestern Career College's certificate program starts at a reasonable $44,964 in first-year earnings, but the trajectory moves in the wrong direction—graduates earn $5,600 less by year four. This backward momentum matters because you're falling further behind the state median of $48,283 rather than catching up. Among Illinois programs in this field, this one ranks in the 40th percentile, meaning six out of ten alternatives perform better. Nearby community colleges like Harper ($64,113) and College of DuPage ($53,537) deliver substantially higher outcomes, suggesting the credential itself may not be the limiting factor.

The debt load of $18,417 exceeds both state and national medians, which compounds the earnings concern. While the debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.41 isn't catastrophic, you're paying above-average costs for below-average results. The declining earnings pattern suggests graduates may be stuck in roles without advancement potential or face challenges maintaining full-time employment in their field.

For a Chicago-area family, this represents a weak value proposition when stronger alternatives exist within the same city. The combination of premium pricing and subpar outcomes compared to local community colleges makes this a hard program to justify, particularly when those alternatives offer clearer paths to higher-paying allied health positions.