Des Moines Area Community College: Funeral Service and Mortuary Science

Associate's degree · CIP 12.03 · No credentials fully online · Ankeny, IA

Graduates of this program who were working and not enrolled had median earnings of $54,692 one year after completing. The median federal loan debt of graduates was $13,625. Nationally, graduates of associate's degree programs in this field earned a median of $45,311 one year after completing.

Median earnings, 1 year
$54,692
19 graduates measured Verified data
Median earnings, 4 years
Data unavailable
Data unavailable
Median federal debt
$13,625
28 borrowers Verified data
Debt to first-year earnings
0.25x
median debt / median earnings Calculated estimate

This program compared with the national picture

MeasureThis programNational median, same field and credential
Median earnings 1 year after completion$54,692$45,311
Median earnings 4 years after completionSuppressed for privacy$52,962
Median federal loan debt (Stafford and Grad PLUS)$13,625$20,000 Median of programs
Estimated monthly payment on median debt (10-year standard)$155
Graduates in the most recent year241,760 across 66 programs

Earnings cohorts: Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars. Debt cohort: NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort. Debt covers federal loans only and excludes private loans and Parent PLUS loans. Earnings are for graduates working and not enrolled, before taxes.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, Most Recent Field of Study Data. Varies by measure; see measure definitions. Published October 15, 2026. Retrieved October 18, 2026. Methodology.

Careers this field prepares students for

From the official CIP to SOC crosswalk. Graduates do not all enter these occupations, and occupation wages describe all workers, not new graduates. Official crosswalk

OccupationMedian wage, all workersChange 2025 to 2035
Funeral home managers$78,790+4.1%
Embalmers$58,780+0.7%
Crematory operators$43,650+3.1%
Morticians, undertakers, and funeral arrangers$55,010+3.0%
Source: National Center for Education Statistics and U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk. CIP 2020 and SOC 2018 taxonomies. Published April 30, 2020. Retrieved October 18, 2026. Methodology.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, National. May 2025 reference period. Published April 30, 2026. Retrieved October 18, 2026. Methodology.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections, Table 1.2: Occupational projections, 2025-35, and worker characteristics, 2025. Base year 2025, projected year 2035. Published August 27, 2026. Retrieved October 18, 2026. Methodology.

Comparable programs with the highest early earnings

SchoolMedian earnings, 1 yrMedian debt
St Petersburg College
FL · Public
$60,716$19,933
Tidewater Community College
VA · Public
$57,792Data unavailable
FINE Mortuary College
MA · Private, for-profit
$55,901$32,040
Arapahoe Community College
CO · Public
$54,973$21,562
Milwaukee Area Technical College
WI · Public
$54,551$20,903
John A Gupton College
TN · Private, nonprofit
$51,837$15,500
Fayetteville Technical Community College
NC · Public
$50,347$20,875
Jefferson State Community College
AL · Public
$50,016$10,548
City Colleges of Chicago-Malcolm X College
IL · Public
$49,916$27,326
Delgado Community College
LA · Public
$49,479$26,093

See all Funeral Service and Mortuary Science programs and national outcomes

Model this program's ROI

Plug this program's published earnings and debt into the ROI calculator, then add your own tuition, aid, and current salary.

Open in the ROI calculator
Des Moines Area Community College Funeral Service and Mortuary Science (Associate's degree): Earnings and Debt | ConnectPrep Career Intelligence