Three Houston for-profit colleges fail federal test for certain degree programs

Three Houston for-profit colleges failed a federal test measuring debt after students' graduation and average graduates' salaries for nine degree programs, the U.S. Department of Education announced.

The analysis was done through President Barack Obama’s Gainful Employment regulations passed in 2014 requiring career colleges to set their students up for well-paying jobs. Programs that failed the requirement graduated students who are paying loans that are more than 30 percent of discretionary income and 12 percent of total earnings.

For-profit colleges are a part of the higher education sector the Obama administration has scrutinized for allegations of fraudulent advertising, high tuition costs and low graduation rates.

The institutions and their programs that failed the financial test regarding students' debt and salaries are:

The Art Institute of Houston's baking and pastry arts/bakery/pastry chef associate's degree.

The Art Institute of Houston's culinary arts/chef training associate's degree.

The Art Institute of Houston's commercial photography bachelor's degree.

The Art Institute of Houston's interior design bachelor's degree.

The Art Institute of Houston's intermedia/multimedia bachelor's degree.

The Art Institute of Houston's fashion merchandising bachelor's degree.

The American College of Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine's acupuncture and oriental medicine master's degree.

Culinary Institute LeNotre's cooking and related culinary arts associate's degree.

Culinary Institute LeNotre's baking and pastry arts/baker/pastry chef associate's degree.

Ten additional programs, also offered by for-profit colleges, were given warnings because their graduates had annual loan payments between 8 and 12 percent of total earnings or between 20 and 30 percent of discretionary earnings. Programs with warnings for four consecutive years cannot receive Title IV financial aid.

They are:

Sanford-Brown College's veterinary/animal health technology/technician and veterinary assistant associate's degree.

Sanford-Brown College's cardiovascular technology/technologist associate's degree.

Sanford-Brown College's clinical/medical laboratory technician associate's degree.

The Art Institute of Houston's Recording arts technology/technician bachelor's degree.

The Art Institute of Houston's graphic design associates degree.

The Art Institute of Houston's graphic design bachelor's degree.

Brightwood College's criminal justice/safety studies associate's degree.

Texas Barber Colleges and Hairstyling Schools cosmetology/cosmetologist undergraduate certificate program.

Texas Barber Colleges and Hairstyling Schools Barbering/barber undergraduate certificate program.

Trend Barber College's barbering/barber undergraduate certificate program.

The Chronicle of Higher Education has a searchable database of programs here.