Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities at Northeastern Junior College

Northeastern Junior College graduates start behind their Colorado peers—$24,287 in the first year puts them in just the 25th percentile statewide, roughly $6,000 below the state median. That's a meaningful gap when you're trying to establish financial independence, and it's particularly striking given that top Colorado programs like Community College of Aurora and Arapahoe Community College place graduates earning over $38,000 right out of the gate.

The redeeming feature here is genuine earnings growth: that 59% jump to $38,671 by year four suggests graduates are successfully transitioning into better roles. Still, this catch-up pattern means your child will spend those crucial early career years earning substantially less than peers at stronger programs. The $11,000 debt load is manageable—typical for associate's degrees—but when paired with below-average starting wages, it creates a tighter financial squeeze in those first years.

For a student committed to staying in rural northeastern Colorado, this program provides a pathway forward. But if your child can access programs in the Denver metro area or other Front Range communities, those alternatives deliver significantly better starting salaries without requiring years of catch-up growth. The question isn't whether graduates eventually reach decent earnings—it's whether starting $6,000-plus behind the state median is worth it when better options exist within the same state.