10-yr median earnings
$45,473
Federal aid recipients only
Public · Watertown, South Dakota
Lake Area Technical College
Lake Area Technical College is a public institution in Watertown, South Dakota. as a public institution, published Scorecard outcomes are the federal Title-IV cohort view of former students — not every graduate and not a guarantee for any one enrollee.
- $15,979
- Avg net price / yr
- $45,473
- 10-yr median earnings
- 69.0%
- 150%-time completion
The verdict
Lake Area Technical College posts above-median former-student earnings.
According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.
- Top 38%
- former-student earnings, US
- 69.0%
- 150%-time completion
- +4%
- earnings, 6→10 yrs
Town: Remote
Carnegie: Associate's
Institution data retrieved July 2026; field-of-study data retrieved March 2026.
How to read this Lake Area Technical College profile
Figures above come from IPEDS institution records published through the College Scorecard (retrieved July 2026 for institution fields; March 2026 for field-of-study). Peer groups and cost cohorts follow IPEDS ownership sector, Carnegie class ("Associate's Colleges: High Career & Technical-High Traditional"), and locale, not an editorial shortlist.
Average net price subtracts grant and scholarship aid from cost of attendance for full-time, first-time undergraduate Title IV recipients. It is a defined cohort average, not a personalized price; income-band fields add context but do not replace the school's current net-price calculator.
Earnings use Treasury-linked records for federally aided former students who were working and not enrolled in the measurement year (completers and noncompleters). IPEDS completion and retention use separate first-time, full-time cohorts, so those denominators are not the earnings cohort. Read cost, completion, and earnings as distinct historical measures, not a causal verdict or individual forecast.
College Value Score
C+
College Value Score
64/100
Lake Area Technical College
A 6-metric composite of earnings, cost, and completion outcomes benchmarked against every reporting US college, not a ranking of teaching quality, campus life, or fit for any individual student. See the full methodology.
Earnings C
$45,473
10-year median former-student earnings
Net Price C-
$15,979
Average annual cost after grants and aid
Completion Rate B-
69.0%
Completion within 150% of normal time
Debt C
$12,000
Median federal debt at graduation
Loan Repayment A
82.0%
Borrowers repaying loans within 3 years
Retention N/A
N/A
First-year students returning for year two
Each axis is the percentile score shown in the breakdown at left; the shape shows this school's overall profile at a glance.
Avg net price
$15,979
After grants and scholarships
150%-time completion
69.0%
Full-time, first-time cohort
150%-time completion vs portal median (57.1%) 69.0%
Less-than-four-year-institution cohort
College ROI Quadrant - Lake Area Technical College vs peers
Each dot is a college plotted by 10-year median earnings (x-axis) vs average net price (y-axis), colored by completion within 150% of normal time. Bottom-right = high earnings/lower price; top-left = lower earnings/higher price.
How Lake Area Technical College ranks nationally
Where this school's former-student earnings fall within the full national distribution of every US college that reports to the College Scorecard, not just its peer set.
Lake Area Technical College: former-student earnings vs. every US college
10-year median earnings, College Scorecard
$45,473 Top 38% higher than 62% of 5,103 US colleges
Each bar is a $20K-wide band; taller bars hold more US colleges. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard · Mar–Jul 2026 retrievals
| Metric | Lake Area Technical College | National rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-yr median earnings | $45,473 | #1935 of 5103 | 62nd |
| Average net price | $15,979 | #2278 of 5020 | 55th (lower is better) |
| 150%-time completion | 69.0% | #1488 of 4858 | 69th |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 1,812 | #1572 of 5462 | 71st |
National ranks count every operating US college reporting each metric to the College Scorecard, separate from the earnings histogram above.
Quick Facts
1,812
Undergraduate enrollment
-
Acceptance rate
-
SAT average
69.0%
150%-time completion
$45,473
10-yr median earnings
-
First-year retention
How Lake Area Technical College ranks in South Dakota
State rank among 21 reporting South Dakota colleges with College Scorecard data, a separate lens from the national distribution above.
| Metric | Lake Area Technical College | State rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-yr median earnings | $45,473 | #13 of 21 | 38th |
| Average net price | $15,979 | #9 of 21 | 57th (lower is better) |
| 150%-time completion | 69.0% | #6 of 21 | 71st |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 1,812 | #8 of 24 | 67th |
Highest former-student earnings in South Dakota
| # | School | 10-yr earnings | Net price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Dakota School of Mines and Technology | $72,257 | $20,183 |
| 2 | Augustana University | $59,217 | $23,894 |
| 3 | South Dakota State University | $55,070 | $19,841 |
| 4 | University of Sioux Falls | $54,521 | $21,383 |
| 5 | Dakota Wesleyan University | $53,728 | $19,735 |
| 6 | University of South Dakota | $51,926 | $19,858 |
| 7 | Dakota State University | $50,970 | $21,057 |
| 8 | Mitchell Technical College | $50,743 | $13,460 |
| 9 | Mount Marty University | $48,179 | $22,227 |
| 10 | Northern State University | $47,618 | $15,812 |
| 11 | Southeast Technical College | $46,709 | $17,400 |
| 12 | Black Hills State University | $46,674 | $15,911 |
| 13 | Lake Area Technical CollegeThis school | $45,473 | $15,979 |
Costs & Financial Aid
Net price by family income at Lake Area Technical College
Average annual net price after grants; Title IV recipient cohort by income bracket
- $0 – $30k
$0 – $30k
$11,193 net price / yr
- $30k – $48k
$30k – $48k
$12,971 net price / yr
- $48k – $75k
$48k – $75k
$14,129 net price / yr
- $110k+
$110k+
$18,230 net price / yr
What this shows Need-based aid pulls net price down at lower brackets at Lake Area Technical College - compare the bar for your income band, not the overall average alone.
Tuition & Net Price
| In-State Tuition | $6,718 |
| Out-of-State Tuition | $6,718 |
| Average Net Price | $15,979 |
27.5%
Pell Grant Rate
57.4%
Federal Loan Rate
$12,000
Median Debt
$127/mo
Monthly Payment
2013–2023: what Lake Area Technical College costs has stayed close to flat
Average net price moved +19.2% over 10 years, from $12,436 to $14,826 in nominal dollars. The median college measured over the same span moved +14.6%.
11 reported years. Nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation.
2013 · $12,4362023 · $14,826
Over the same years, enrollment went +11.5% (1,533 → 1,710 students).
Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, per-year fields (2013–2023). Net price is the average cost after grant and scholarship aid for federally-aided undergraduates.
Student Demographics
Race & ethnicity
Student body at a glance
47.9%
Female
28.7%
First Generation
Outcomes
$43,659
Median Earnings (6yr)
65.2%
Earning Over $25K
82.0%
Loan Repayment, Completers (3yr)
Outcomes & debt snapshot
| Measure | Cohort / horizon | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Completion within 150% of normal time | First-time, full-time | 69.0% |
| Median earnings | 6 years after entry | $43,659 |
| Median earnings | 10 years after entry | $45,473 |
| Share earning over $25,000 | Working, not enrolled | 65.2% |
| Loan repayment rate | Completers, 3 years after leaving | 82.0% |
| Median federal student debt | At completion | $12,000 |
| Estimated monthly payment | Standard 10-year plan | $127/mo |
Programs & Earnings
Field-of-study summary by credential
| Credential | Programs | Award count | Avg earnings | Top earnings | Avg debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Associate's | 16 | 478 | $52,856 | $72,225 | $12,415 |
| Certificate | 6 | 222 | $44,064 | $56,633 | $9,000 |
Top programs at Lake Area Technical College by completer earnings
Median earnings of program completers, College Scorecard field-of-study file
- Construction Engineering T…
Construction Engineering Technology/Technician
$72,225 median earnings
- Electromechanical Technolo…
Electromechanical Technologies/Technicians
$69,953 median earnings
- Vehicle Maintenance and Re…
Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians
$60,763 median earnings
- Computer Science
Computer Science
$60,752 median earnings
- Practical Nursing, Vocatio…
Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants
$56,633 median earnings
- Criminal Justice and Corre…
Criminal Justice and Corrections
$52,822 median earnings
- Clinical/Medical Laborator…
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions
$51,402 median earnings
- Precision Metal Working
Precision Metal Working
$51,201 median earnings
What this shows The highest-earning programs at a school are not necessarily its most popular ones - a small specialized program can post strong median earnings without reflecting the outcome most students here actually see.
Explore Data-Matched Colleges
Matches use Scorecard measures among reporting colleges — not state-system recommendations or geographic proximity.
Similar Enrollment and Sector
Other Public institutions closest in reported enrollment, preferring the same Carnegie classification.
Allegany College of Maryland
Cumberland, MD
1,831 students · 19 apart
BridgeValley Community & Technical College
South Charleston, WV
1,854 students · 42 apart
North Dakota State College of Science
Wahpeton, ND
1,909 students · 97 apart
Southeastern Community College
West Burlington, IA
1,699 students · 113 apart
Similar Reported Net Price
Other Public institutions with the nearest reported average net price.
East Tennessee State University
Johnson City, TN
$15,983 net price · $4 apart
Baltimore City Community College
Baltimore, MD
$15,987 net price · $8 apart
Northwest Technical Institute
Springdale, AR
$15,992 net price · $13 apart
Central Alabama Community College
Alexander City, AL
$15,996 net price · $17 apart
Similar 2013–2023 Net-Price Trend
Same-sector institutions with the same direction and nearest fitted annual change; only series with R² of at least 0.40 qualify.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the admissions statistics for Lake Area Technical College? ▼
Lake Area Technical College is a public institution in Watertown, South Dakota. Undergraduate enrollment is 1,812 students.
How much do Lake Area Technical College former students earn? ▼
Federally aided former students at Lake Area Technical College who were working and not enrolled had median earnings of $45,473 ten years after entry; the cohort is not limited to graduates. Six years after entry, the corresponding median is $43,659.
How much does Lake Area Technical College cost? ▼
The average net price at Lake Area Technical College is $15,979. In-state tuition is $6,718 and out-of-state tuition is $6,718. Median student debt at graduation is $12,000.
What is the graduation rate at Lake Area Technical College? ▼
Lake Area Technical College has a 69.0% completion rate within 150% of normal program time at a less-than-four-year institution.
Is Lake Area Technical College worth the student debt? ▼
The median student debt at Lake Area Technical College is $12,000, while former students earn a median of $45,473 ten years after enrollment. That debt represents about 26% of those annual earnings. Among borrowers who completed their program, 82.0% are repaying their loans within 3 years. Estimated monthly loan payment is $127.
Sources & methodology
Public-college profiles lean on IPEDS enrollment and Scorecard Title-IV outcomes. State appropriations are outside this page; the figures below are the federal cohort measures only.
Every number is read live from the Mar–Jul 2026 Scorecard/IPEDS retrievals. Public institutions often enroll large Title-IV cohorts, so medians can be stable — still cohort averages, never a personal forecast. Read the full methodology for how the data is sourced, computed, and verified.
- College Scorecard, U.S. Department of Education - former-student earnings, cost & completion (collegescorecard.ed.gov).
- IPEDS, National Center for Education Statistics - enrollment, admissions, Carnegie class & demographics (nces.ed.gov/ipeds).
- U.S. Treasury / IRS earnings linkage - median earnings 6 & 10 years after enrollment for federal-aid recipients (irs.gov).
- College Scorecard, Field of Study - program-level (credential) earnings & debt (collegescorecard.ed.gov).
- Federal Student Aid (Title IV / NSLDS) - U.S. Department of Education - net price, student debt & aid-recipient repayment outcomes (studentaid.gov).
Where to go next from Lake Area Technical College
- Compare Lake Area Technical College against schools with similar outcomes at a lower average net price.Find similar schools that cost less
- Browse every reporting college in South Dakota side by side.Browse South Dakota
- See how fields of study differ on former-student earnings and debt.Explore programs
Public-college Scorecard figures are historical Title-IV cohort averages — confirm current tuition, aid, and admissions rules with the institution before deciding.
Every figure on PlainCollege is rendered directly from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard data, no number is typed in by an editor. Public-institution profiles compile Scorecard Title-IV earnings, IPEDS enrollment/admissions, and Treasury linkage fields — no editor-typed figures. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Review the public data changelog. Data current as of Mar–Jul 2026 retrievals.