Valley Grande Institute for Academic Studies
Valley Grande Institute for Academic Studies is a private, nonprofit institution in Weslaco, TX, focused on training healthcare professionals. The school offers hands-on classroom, lab, and clinical training, with programs like Practical Nursing and Medical Assisting. VGI has established partnerships, including a collaboration with the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine, to provide students with clinical experiences and strengthen the pipeline for allied health professionals in the region.
Programs Analyzed
Avg Grad Earnings
Avg TradeSchoolOutlook Score
All Programs at Valley Grande Institute for Academic Studies
4 trade programs at Valley Grande Institute for, ranked by TradeSchoolOutlook Score (combines earnings, ROI, AI resilience, and job market size). Use the “compare” links to see how this school’s programs stack up against others nationally.
| Program | Score | Earnings | Debt |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Practical Nursing
Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants Compare nationwide → Compare in TX → |
58 | $30,574/yr | $7,917 |
|
Health Administration
Health and Medical Administrative Services Compare nationwide → Compare in TX → |
51 | $11,744/yr | $7,019 |
|
Medical Assisting
Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services Compare nationwide → Compare in TX → |
47 | $16,540/yr | $9,500 |
|
Allied Health Professions
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions Compare nationwide → Compare in TX → |
41 | $19,302/yr | $9,500 |
Reading the table: Score combines earnings, ROI, AI resilience, and job market size on a 0–100 scale. Earnings = median first-year salary from College Scorecard. Debt = median federal debt at graduation (blank where Scorecard suppresses small samples). 10yr ROI = projected 10-year earnings ÷ in-state tuition. AI Risk reflects task-level AI exposure across mapped occupations. Job Market = annual openings nationwide for connected occupations.
More Trade Schools in Texas
Top-scored trade schools elsewhere in Texas, ranked by average TradeSchoolOutlook Score across their programs.
Apprenticeship Pathways in Texas
Earn-while-you-learn alternatives in Texas. Registered apprenticeships skip tuition and pay you during training, though training periods are typically longer.
Trade Schools Near Weslaco
Other cities in Texas with multiple trade schools, sorted by distance from Weslaco.
About This Data
TradeSchoolOutlook analyzes 4 trade and vocational programs at Valley Grande Institute for Academic Studies using earnings data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard and employment projections from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2024–2034).
The TradeSchoolOutlook Score (0–100) combines graduate earnings, return on investment, AI resilience, and job market size. AI Risk reflects task-level exposure for the occupations each program feeds into. Job Market shows the size of the national hiring pool. Programs without published debt figures had small reporting samples that the College Scorecard suppresses for privacy.