Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications at Remington College-Lafayette Campus

Remington College-Lafayette's networking program tells two different stories depending on where you look. Graduates earn about $36,000 initially—well below the national median of $43,000 for this field—but they're actually performing at the state median for Louisiana. With only 7 schools offering this program in the state and a small graduating class here, you're looking at limited data points, but the numbers suggest Louisiana's IT market simply pays less than other states for this type of work.

The debt load of $22,700 creates a manageable ratio of 0.64, meaning graduates owe roughly 8 months of their first-year salary. That's reasonable for an associate's degree, and earnings do tick up slightly to $37,000 by year four. However, the small sample size (under 30 graduates) makes it hard to know if these outcomes are typical or if a few outliers are skewing the picture. The fact that 97% of students receive Pell grants suggests this serves a predominantly low-income population, which may influence post-graduation outcomes beyond just the curriculum.

For a Louisiana family, this program looks like a path to steady, if modest, income that matches local market rates. For someone considering out-of-state options or who has the flexibility to relocate after graduation, the $8,000 earnings gap compared to national benchmarks is significant enough to warrant exploring alternatives, particularly when schools like Herzing University-New Orleans show graduates earning $44,000.