Electrical/Electronics Maintenance and Repair Technology at Montcalm Community College

At $12,000 in estimated debt, this program appears positioned below the national median of roughly $15,000 for similar electrical maintenance programs nationwide. That's a meaningful difference—about $3,000 less in loans to repay. Combined with first-year earnings that peer programs suggest will land around $45,300, you're looking at a debt burden equal to just over three months of gross income. In technical trades, that's manageable territory.

The challenge here is uncertainty. These figures come from comparable programs nationally because Montcalm's graduate cohort was too small for the Department of Education to report specific outcomes. Michigan has nine schools offering this credential, but none have published data either, leaving you without local comparison points. What we do know: electrical maintenance fields typically offer steady demand and clear career pathways, but outcomes can vary significantly based on local industry presence and program quality.

For a parent evaluating this investment, the estimated debt load looks reasonable, but you'll need to do legwork the data can't answer. Talk to the program coordinator about job placement rates, which employers hire their graduates, and whether local manufacturers or facilities actively recruit from Montcalm. If those connections are strong, this could be a smart, affordable path into skilled trades work. Without that confirmation, you're betting on estimates.