Jackson, MS (population: 171,210) has three vocational schools within its city limits. Belhaven College, the highest ranked school in the city with a vocational program, has a total student population of 2,883. It is the 2201st highest ranked school in the USA and the 13th highest in the state of Mississippi (#1 is Creations College of Cosmetology).
Vocational students from Jackson schools who go on to become vocational educators, event planners, landscape architects, landscape designers, etc. have a good chance at finding employment. For example, there are 114,420 people working as vocational education teachers alone in the US, and their average annual salary is $52,030. Also, Middle school teachers make on average $53,550 per year and there are about 665,420 of them employed in the US today. In fact, in the Jackson area alone, there are 2,050 employed middle school teachers earning an average salary of $41,180. Vocational education teachers in this area earn $42,620/yr and there are 420 employed.
Jackson lies in Hinds county, which is one of the 35 counties in Mississippi. Overall, the Jackson area has 245,940 total employed workers according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, with a 1.8% unemployment rate, $17.60/hr average worker wage, and a $36,600 average annual salary. Thus, about 1.703 out of every 1000 jobs in Jackson are held by vocational education teachers, and 8.325/1000 are held by middle school teachers.
Of the 3 vocational schools in Jackson, none have a student population over 10k. After taking into account tuition, living expenses, and financial aid, Belhaven College comes out as the most expensive ($19,298/yr) for vocational students, with Jackson State University as the lowest, reported at only $10,375/yr.
| Name | State | Population | # of Schools | Avg School Rank | Total Programs | Distance from Jackson |
| Wesson | MS | - | 1 | 19.2783 | 98 | 44.2 miles |
| Alcorn State | MS | - | 1 | 24.4923 | 50 | 62.5 miles |
| Ellisville | MS | - | 1 | 17.033 | 43 | 77.4 miles |
| Itta Bena | MS | - | 1 | 22.4426 | 49 | 81.5 miles |