Is Texarkana College Worth It?

Texarkana College gives you a modest financial return that depends almost entirely on what you study. The low debt load keeps your downside contained, but the median earnings a decade out sit below what a full-time worker earns at many hourly jobs, so the school alone does not guarantee a payoff.

Nursing is the reason to come here. The associate nursing program pushes graduates past $52k, and you carry only a few thousand dollars more in debt than someone finishing a liberal arts associate degree that pays less than half as much. That gap is the whole story: the credential you pick matters more than the campus you attend.

The trades sit in the middle. HVAC and precision metal working leave you with low debt but earnings in the low-to-mid $20k range, which works if you use the certificate as a fast entry into local hiring and build from there. The general studies associate degree is the weakest bet on paper, earning less than the HVAC certificate while costing more to finish.

The risk here is the 36% graduation rate. If you enroll and don't finish, you get the debt without the nursing salary that justifies it. Your financial outcome swings hard on completion, not admission.

On price, families earning under $48k pay the least, around $6,000 a year, and that tier is where this school makes the most sense. Above $110k the net price nearly doubles, and at that point the value proposition thins out unless you're locked into the nursing track.

Come here for nursing, or for a trade certificate you can finish quickly and put to work locally. If you're chasing a general degree or need a four-year outcome, the numbers point you elsewhere.