Public · Community college

Michigan Career and Technical Institute

Plainwell, Michigan · Distant rural

0%
Transfer rate: —
Avg net price: 38%
Grad / completion: $29,376
Median earnings

Michigan Career and Technical Institute is a public certificate-granting institution in Plainwell, Michigan (distant rural setting), enrolling 118 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.

PublicSmall · 118 undergradsDistant ruralCold wintersSnowy

About Plainwell, Michigan

Plainwell is a city in Allegan County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Allegan County was organized in 1835, and the Plainwell area was settled soon after. It was on a stagecoach route from Kalamazoo to Grand Rapids, and later the Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad was constructed along the same route. (Wikipedia)

Setting: Distant rural
Highest degree offered: Certificate
Nearest big city: 15 miles to Kalamazoo, MI
To Great Lakes shore: 38 miles
Nearest airport: 19 miles to Kalamazoo/Battle Creek (AZO)

How Michigan Career and Technical Institute compares

Graduation rate38%

Higher than 23% · #63 of 96 in Michigan

First-year retention80%

Higher than 62%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$29,376

Higher than 29% · #59 of 88 in Michigan

Student–faculty ratio5 : 1

Lower than 97%

Undergraduate enrollment118

Larger than 32%

Percentiles compare Michigan Career and Technical Institute with the nation's 3,519 two-year and certificate schools, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count two-year and certificate schools in Michigan.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

Women2824%
Men9076%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

White79%
Black11%
Hispanic1.7%
Other or multiracial8.5%

Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment: 118
Student–faculty ratio: 5 : 1
Pell Grant recipients: 0%
First-generation students: 34%
Students over 25: 5%
Median family income: $21,175

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Where students come from

Home state of the 49 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

From Michigan100%

Most first-years stay in state — Michigan Career and Technical Institute draws overwhelmingly from Michigan.

Out-of-state students usually pay a higher tuition rate at public schools — check the cost card above for your bracket. Source: IPEDS residence & migration, fall 2023 entering class.

Cost

In-state tuition: $8,549
Out-of-state tuition: $12,409
Room & board: $7,208
Total cost of attendance: —
Average net price: —

Outcomes

Graduated: 38%
First-year retention: 80%
Transferred to another college: 0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry: $29,458
Median earnings, 10 years after entry: $29,376
Median debt at graduation: —
Students with federal loans: 0%

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing: Yes
Dorm capacity: 350
Dorm capacity vs undergrads: 100%+
Application fee: Free

Does the school pay you to attend?

Michigan Career and Technical Institute funds essentially no grants of its own — almost all aid here comes from federal (Pell), state, or outside sources rather than the school's own discount. Its sticker price is what it is.

Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid, 2022–23 full-time first-year undergraduates.

Is it worth it?

A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.

Median earnings (10 years): $29,376
Typical debt at graduation: —
Debt vs. one year's pay: —
Out-earn a HS grad: 19%

Weigh it value

The payoff is less clear-cut here — weigh the debt against the earnings and your intended field before borrowing heavily.

Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.

The pay gap here

Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.

Women

$21,039

Men

$30,188

Men out-earn women by $9,149 (43%) a decade out.

Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.

Campus climate

Summer high: 85°F
Winter low: 19°F
Annual rain: 39.5″
Annual snow: 68″

Average temperature

HighLow

Average precipitation (inches)

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Gull Lake Biological Stn, MI US station (10.2 mi from campus).

What Michigan Career and Technical Institute graduates study — and earn

Culinary Arts and Related Services

29 grads$15k 1 yr$25k 5 yr— debt

29$15,195$25,371—Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants

24 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

24———Precision Metal Working

20 grads— 1 yr$30k 5 yr— debt

20—$29,864—General Sales, Merchandising and Related Marketing Operations

18 grads$16k 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

18$15,674——Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services

16 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

16———Construction Trades, General

14 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

14———Building/Construction Finishing, Management, and Inspection

14 grads$23k 1 yr$27k 5 yr— debt

14$23,493$26,772—Applied Horticulture and Horticultural Business Services

13 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

13———Graphic Communications

12 grads$15k 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

12$14,862——Electrical/Electronics Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians

9 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

9———Woodworking

9 grads$27k 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

9$26,594——Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management

3 grads— 1 yr— 5 yr— debt

3———

Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.

Colleges similar to Michigan Career and Technical Institute

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Michigan Career and Technical Institute side by side →

Western Technology Center

Public

Burns Flat, Oklahoma · Remote rural · 94 mi to Oklahoma City

Students: 129
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $30k

Aaniiih Nakoda College

Public

Harlem, Montana · Remote rural · 187 mi to Billings

Students: 106
Tuition: $3k
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $31k

Pioneer Technology Center

Public

Ponca City, Oklahoma · Remote town · 68 mi to Wichita

Students: 89
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $30k

Big Bend Technical College

Public

Perry, Florida · Fringe rural · 49 mi to Tallahassee

Students: 130
Tuition: —
Transfer: 0%
Earnings: $28k

Pamlico Community College

Public

Grantsboro, North Carolina · Distant rural · 86 mi to Wilmington

Students: 165
Tuition: $2k
Transfer: 23%
Earnings: $30k

Ross Medical Education Center-Flint

For-profit

Flint, Michigan · Large suburb · 44 mi to Lansing

Students: 116
Tuition: —
Transfer: 1%
Earnings: $30k

Colleges near Michigan Career and Technical Institute

Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine

Kalamazoo, MI · Private nonprofit · Graduate

15 mi

Kalamazoo College

Kalamazoo, MI · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 1,149 students

15 mi

Western Michigan University

Kalamazoo, MI · Public · Bachelor's · 12,568 students

16 mi

Ross Medical Education Center-Portage

Portage, MI · Private for-profit · Certificate · 124 students

20 mi

The Salon Professional Academy-Battle Creek

Battle Creek, MI · Private for-profit · Certificate · 49 students

21 mi

Kellogg Community College

Battle Creek, MI · Public · Associate · 2,971 students

21 mi

Kalamazoo Valley Community College

Kalamazoo, MI · Public · Associate · 4,997 students

21 mi

Davenport University

Grand Rapids, MI · Private nonprofit · Bachelor's · 3,134 students

24 mi

Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.