As estimates of the total student loan debt exceed $800 billion and default rates approach 9 percent, some commentators are beginning to wonder whether an expensive education is really worth it, at least from a financial perspective. The combination of skyrocketing tuition and a dismal job market creates an environment where many are struggling to pay off hefty loans.

But this is more true of some professions than others. Biomedical engineers can make $81,540 a year with a bachelor's degree, while a law clerk needs a law degree and still might make less than $40,000. The following interactive lets you search nearly 750 occupations in the Bureau of Labor Statistics database and see the required education for that profession, how much it will cost, what you'll potentially earn and the government's estimates for whether such jobs will increase or decrease over the next decade.

Just type a few letters of the kind of job that interests you in the box beneath "Occupation" to see a list of matches in the database. It's better to be specific—try "surgeon" instead of "doctor," for instance.

Of course, the cost of an education can vary widely depending on things like in-state status and whether it's a public or private institution. The sticker price we've listed is not cumulative; the cost of a doctoral degree does not include an undergraduate education.