Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions at University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus

Pitt's Allied Health associate's degree carries a prestigious name but delivers middling outcomes—graduates earn about $49,000, falling $2,000 below Pennsylvania's median for this program and trailing the national median by $5,000. More strikingly, this ranks at just the 40th percentile statewide, meaning six in ten comparable Pennsylvania programs produce better earnings. Community colleges like Lackawanna and Delaware County send graduates into the same field earning $65,000+, a $16,000 annual difference that adds up to roughly $640,000 over a 40-year career.

The small sample size (under 30 graduates) warrants caution—these numbers could shift dramatically with more data. But two patterns stand out: earnings essentially flatline from year one to year four (just 1% growth), and you're paying flagship university costs for community-college-level outcomes. The debt load of $22,111 isn't crushing at 0.45 times first-year earnings, but it's above both state and national medians while the earnings are below.

For an anxious parent, the question is simple: Why pay Pitt's tuition premium for an associate's degree that underperforms Pennsylvania community colleges? Unless this program offers unique clinical partnerships or transfer pathways that justify the differential, the numbers suggest looking at those higher-earning alternatives first. With limited data backing these figures, you'd want to verify recent graduate outcomes directly with the program before committing.