College Scorecard · field of study · all U.S. colleges

Is a Plumbing and Related Water Supply Services degree worth the debt?

The figures below lead with the Certificate, aggregated across 12 colleges (12 of 12 programs report earnings). Other credential levels are in the table further down.

Median pay · 1 yr after

$30,230

Graduates only, early career.$30,599 two years out.

Median federal debt

$9,500

Federal loans only — not private or Parent PLUS.

Debt vs a year's pay

0.32×

32% of a first year's earnings.

Typical debt is well under a single year's early-career pay.

The college you pick moves this a lot

The middle 50% of Certificate programs in Plumbing and Related Water Supply Services report early-career pay between $24,833 and $34,645 — a spread of $9,812 that depends on the program and who attends it, not the major alone.

25th pct $24,833 median $30,230 75th pct $34,645

By degree level

Each level is a separate decision — more schooling usually means more pay and more debt.

LevelPay · 1yrDebtDebt/pay

Certificate 12 colleges $30,230 $9,500 0.32×

Associate's 3 colleges $39,659 — —

Where a Certificate in this field reports the highest early-career pay

The 12 programs with the highest reported pay one year after completion. This reflects who enrolls and where they live as much as the program itself — it is not a causal quality ranking.

Saint Paul College MN $91,570 —

City Colleges of Chicago-Kennedy-King College IL $63,469 —

St Cloud Technical and Community College MN $40,273 —

Industrial Management Training Institute CT $32,769 $7,626 debt

Berk Trade and Business School NY $30,828 $6,333 debt

South Florida Institute of Technology FL $30,631 $9,500 debt

Apex Technical School NY $29,830 $9,500 debt

Hohokus School of Trade and Technical Sciences NJ $25,693 $10,478 debt

Pennco Tech-Bristol PA $25,043 $9,500 debt

Orleans Technical College PA $24,204 $7,521 debt

Tennessee College of Applied Technology-Elizabethton TN $21,458 —

NUC University PR $20,925 $9,500 debt

What these numbers are — and are not

Every figure here is a median across college programs in Plumbing and Related Water Supply Services, from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. It is not a prediction of what you would earn (your college, effort, and local job market vary enormously — see the spread above), not lifetime earnings (it is measured 1–2 years after completion, early career), not proof the major caused the outcome (who enters a field differs by field — selection, not causation), and not a "best majors" ranking: earnings are one dimension of worth, not the whole of it. Teaching and social work pay far less than the fields at the top of this list and matter enormously. Earnings cover federally-aided completers at programs large enough to report.

Also available: structured data (JSON-LD) · plain text · JSON. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard — Field of Study (2026-06-10 release). · explore this field on the official Scorecard