---
title: Austin Peay State University — cost, debt & earnings (College Scorecard)
location: Clarksville, TN
control: Public
source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (2026-06-10 release)
sourceUrl: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/
---

# Austin Peay State University

Clarksville, TN · Public · Bachelor-granting

> Federal College Scorecard institution **medians** — not a prediction of any one student's outcome, and not a figure for any single program. Earnings/debt cover federally-aided students.

## The bottom line

| Figure | Value | Status |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Typical earnings, 10 yrs after entry | $44,301 | recorded |
| Earnings range (25th–75th pct) | $26,869 – $64,102 | recorded |
| Typical federal debt | $13,202 | recorded |
| Debt of students who withdrew | $10,500 | recorded |
| Completion rate | 40% | recorded |
| Average annual net cost | $22,233 | recorded |
| % earning above a $28k HS-grad wage | 63% | recorded |
| Debt ÷ a year's earnings | 0.30× | derived |
| Earnings premium vs $28k HS benchmark | $16,301 | derived |

**40% of students finish** — the loans are owed whether or not you graduate, so read every figure below next to this number.

Typical **federal** loan debt is $13,202 (≈ 30% of a year's typical earnings here). Note: this counts federal loans only — not private loans, Parent PLUS, or family savings — so true borrowing is usually higher; and because dropouts borrow less, low-completion schools can show a deceptively low debt figure.

## Earnings by major (the number that decides "worth it")

> **Different measure — read on its own terms.** These are median earnings **1 year after completing the program** (early career, graduates only) — NOT the 10-years-after-entry school-wide figure above. Do not compare a program figure to the school figure; compare majors to each other. The Dept. of Education omits programs with too few graduates.

By program, early-career pay ranges from $21,294 to $86,407 across 32 program(s).

| Major | Credential | Pay (1 yr out) | Median debt |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Master's Degree | $86,407 | $44,596 |
| Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions. | Bachelor's Degree | $58,494 | $12,500 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Bachelor's Degree | $56,317 | $23,365 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Master's Degree | $54,505 | not reported |
| Computer and Information Sciences, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $48,961 | $22,246 |
| Curriculum and Instruction. | Master's Degree | $46,500 | not reported |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas. | Master's Degree | $45,506 | $22,600 |
| Education, General. | Master's Degree | $44,350 | $35,766 |
| Communication and Media Studies. | Master's Degree | $43,011 | not reported |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness. | Master's Degree | $41,824 | not reported |
| Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions. | Bachelor's Degree | $41,336 | $25,000 |
| Student Counseling and Personnel Services. | Master's Degree | $39,225 | $41,000 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. | Bachelor's Degree | $37,047 | $24,000 |
| Social Work. | Master's Degree | $37,025 | $20,500 |
| Chemistry. | Bachelor's Degree | $36,941 | $18,608 |
| Business/Commerce, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $36,632 | $25,000 |
| History. | Bachelor's Degree | $31,092 | $19,375 |
| English Language and Literature, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $30,723 | $24,860 |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections. | Bachelor's Degree | $29,317 | $21,090 |
| Political Science and Government. | Bachelor's Degree | $29,011 | $20,500 |
| Sociology. | Bachelor's Degree | $27,796 | $18,250 |
| Agriculture, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $27,730 | $18,875 |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness. | Bachelor's Degree | $27,696 | $22,215 |
| Social Work. | Bachelor's Degree | $27,455 | $25,000 |
| Biology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $26,843 | $24,250 |
| Psychology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $26,768 | $22,500 |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities. | Bachelor's Degree | $26,668 | $19,000 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Bachelor's Degree | $26,045 | $22,250 |
| Communication and Media Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $25,352 | $23,175 |
| Music. | Bachelor's Degree | $21,711 | $30,900 |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities. | Associate's Degree | $21,476 | $16,595 |
| Fine and Studio Arts. | Bachelor's Degree | $21,294 | $22,964 |

## What this is — and is NOT

Institution-wide medians from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. **Not** a prediction of what you would earn or owe, **not** a figure for any single program (a CS and a fine-arts graduate of the same school diverge enormously), **not** proof the school caused the outcome (selection, not causation), and **not** a "best college" ranking. Explore Austin Peay State University by field of study at the official Scorecard: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?219602

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Structured data (JSON-LD), each figure labeled by epistemic status: `/education/austin-peay-state-university-tn.jsonld` · all schools: `/education`