Accounting at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College

Northeast Wisconsin Technical College graduates this accounting program with relatively low debt—$14,536 versus the national median of $19,354—but the earnings picture reveals why Wisconsin employers value experience over entry-level credentials. At $40,925 initially, grads start above the national median but land in the 40th percentile among Wisconsin accounting programs. More concerning: earnings slide to $38,277 by year four, suggesting this associate's degree hits a ceiling in a state where programs at Madison Area Tech and Waukesha County Tech produce graduates earning $45,000+.

The small sample size (under 30 graduates) makes these numbers less reliable, but the pattern mirrors what we see across technical accounting programs: solid first jobs that don't advance much without additional credentials. The 0.36 debt-to-earnings ratio is manageable—you'd pay roughly a third of one year's salary to service this debt—but you're betting on either moving up within a company or returning for a bachelor's degree later.

For a student planning to stay in northeastern Wisconsin and enter the workforce immediately, this works as an affordable starting point. But if your child has the grades and interest to pursue a four-year accounting degree, the earnings data suggests that's worth considering first, especially since Wisconsin's stronger technical programs consistently produce graduates earning $4,000-7,000 more annually.