Electrical Engineering Technologies/Technicians at Milwaukee Area Technical College

Milwaukee Area Technical College's electrical engineering technology program navigates a tricky gap: while comparable associate programs nationally suggest solid first-year earnings around $55,000, the actual four-year earnings figure of $62,151 tells a more promising story about this specific program's trajectory. That 13% jump suggests graduates build valuable skills that the labor market increasingly rewards—not the stagnation you might see in dead-end technical roles.

The debt picture looks manageable based on peer institutions at MATC, with estimated borrowing around $12,000 yielding a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.22. That's well below the warning threshold and suggests most graduates could reasonably pay off loans within a few years. With over 40% of students receiving Pell grants, this program appears to serve a population that needs technical credentials to access middle-class earnings without taking on crushing debt.

The critical unknown here is how this specific program stacks up against Wisconsin's nine other electrical technology programs—none have sufficient reported data for direct comparison. What we do know is that the four-year earnings figure is actual, not estimated, giving you confidence that MATC graduates are earning in the low-60s range four years out. For an associate degree in a skilled trade with strong regional demand, that's a respectable return, particularly if your child is mechanically inclined and prefers hands-on work to a four-year university path.