Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians programs in South Dakota
8 schools in South Dakota teach this, at certificate or associate level. 3 of them report what graduates earn two years out; the highest is $40,821 at Lake Area Technical College.
What this work pays in South Dakota
Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics in South Dakota earn a median of $51,160 a year across 2,010 jobs. That is what the occupation pays everyone in it — not what graduates of any one program below earned.
| Also leads to | Median | Jobs in South Dakota |
|---|---|---|
| First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers | $80,810 | 1,750 |
| Bus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists | $58,120 | 1,340 |
| Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | $47,980 | 1,150 |
| Automotive Body and Related Repairers | $49,460 | 800 |
| Engine and Other Machine Assemblers | $45,930 | 550 |
Occupation wages: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025.
Schools
| School | Credential | Median debt | Graduate earnings, 2 yrs | Graduates |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Area Technical College Watertown | Associate's degree | $12,000 | $40,821 (177 grads) | 109 |
| Southeast Technical College Sioux Falls | Associate's degree | $12,000 | $39,369 (46 grads) | 37 |
| Mitchell Technical College Mitchell | Associate's degree | — | $32,772 (25 grads) | 13 |
| Western Dakota Technical College Rapid City | Associate's degree | $12,483 | not published | 27 |
| Lake Area Technical College Watertown | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 21 |
| Mitchell Technical College Mitchell | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 0 |
| Oglala Lakota College Kyle | Associate's degree | — | not published | 1 |
| Southeast Technical College Sioux Falls | Undergraduate certificate | — | not published | 0 |
A dash under earnings or debt means the U.S. Department of Education has not published a figure for that program — it withholds any median computed from too few graduates, which covers about four of every five programs. It never means zero, and it says nothing about whether the program is any good. Where a figure is shown, the number of graduates behind it is shown with it.
Email me when these figures change
The U.S. Department of Education publishes new cost, debt and earnings figures once a year, and every number on this page changes at once. One email when that happens for Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians — nothing else, and nothing in between.
Program and outcome figures: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, released 2026-06-10.