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

# Ball State University

Muncie, IN · 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 | $51,833 | recorded |
| Earnings range (25th–75th pct) | $36,578 – $72,407 | recorded |
| Typical federal debt | $16,904 | recorded |
| Debt of students who withdrew | $6,500 | recorded |
| Completion rate | 62% | recorded |
| Average annual net cost | $26,146 | recorded |
| % earning above a $28k HS-grad wage | 75% | recorded |
| Debt ÷ a year's earnings | 0.33× | derived |
| Earnings premium vs $28k HS benchmark | $23,833 | derived |

**62% 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 $16,904 (≈ 33% 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 $21,326 to $95,451 across 67 program(s).

| Major | Credential | Pay (1 yr out) | Median debt |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Master's Degree | $95,451 | $33,250 |
| Business/Commerce, General. | Master's Degree | $75,885 | $23,417 |
| Information Science/Studies. | Master's Degree | $69,551 | $19,632 |
| Construction Management. | Bachelor's Degree | $65,771 | $25,500 |
| Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods. | Bachelor's Degree | $60,545 | $16,654 |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. | Master's Degree | $59,326 | $33,092 |
| Educational Administration and Supervision. | Master's Degree | $58,368 | $21,304 |
| Computer and Information Sciences, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $58,195 | $23,512 |
| Management Information Systems and Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $58,157 | $22,665 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Bachelor's Degree | $57,387 | $24,732 |
| Accounting and Related Services. | Master's Degree | $55,067 | not reported |
| Journalism. | Master's Degree | $54,012 | not reported |
| Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions. | Bachelor's Degree | $53,563 | $27,000 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Bachelor's Degree | $53,024 | $20,500 |
| Special Education and Teaching. | Master's Degree | $52,267 | $27,000 |
| Special Education and Teaching. | Graduate/Professional Certificate | $51,095 | $27,500 |
| Curriculum and Instruction. | Master's Degree | $50,333 | not reported |
| Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians. | Bachelor's Degree | $50,299 | not reported |
| Architecture and Related Services, Other. | Master's Degree | $49,733 | not reported |
| Accounting and Related Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $49,602 | $23,172 |
| Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Services. | Master's Degree | $48,764 | $30,949 |
| Business/Managerial Economics. | Bachelor's Degree | $47,466 | $26,821 |
| General Sales, Merchandising and Related Marketing Operations. | Bachelor's Degree | $46,833 | $24,250 |
| Finance and Financial Management Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $46,474 | $23,000 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas. | Master's Degree | $46,285 | $22,600 |
| Public Administration. | Master's Degree | $45,572 | not reported |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. | Master's Degree | $44,849 | $24,000 |
| Business/Commerce, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $43,798 | $24,025 |
| Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology. | Master's Degree | $43,218 | $36,910 |
| Human Resources Management and Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $42,593 | $19,500 |
| Public Administration and Social Service Professions, Other. | Master's Degree | $42,366 | not reported |
| Special Education and Teaching. | Bachelor's Degree | $40,987 | $22,500 |
| Student Counseling and Personnel Services. | Master's Degree | $40,708 | $16,516 |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness. | Master's Degree | $39,236 | not reported |
| Marketing. | Bachelor's Degree | $38,503 | $21,825 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas. | Bachelor's Degree | $38,492 | $22,875 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. | Bachelor's Degree | $37,922 | $21,954 |
| Social Work. | Bachelor's Degree | $37,657 | $21,500 |
| Radio, Television, and Digital Communication. | Master's Degree | $37,323 | not reported |
| Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication. | Bachelor's Degree | $36,791 | $23,250 |
| Natural Resources Conservation and Research. | Bachelor's Degree | $36,766 | $27,000 |
| Chemistry. | Bachelor's Degree | $34,760 | $25,000 |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections. | Bachelor's Degree | $34,512 | $21,982 |
| Communication and Media Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $33,377 | $21,500 |
| Apparel and Textiles. | Bachelor's Degree | $33,372 | not reported |
| Hospitality Administration/Management. | Bachelor's Degree | $33,366 | $24,047 |
| Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $33,247 | not reported |
| Legal Professions and Studies, Other. | Bachelor's Degree | $32,964 | $27,000 |
| Architecture and Related Services, Other. | Bachelor's Degree | $32,135 | not reported |
| Geography and Cartography. | Bachelor's Degree | $32,002 | $24,750 |
| Journalism. | Bachelor's Degree | $31,718 | $24,418 |
| Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics. | Bachelor's Degree | $31,377 | $21,702 |
| History. | Bachelor's Degree | $31,056 | $20,341 |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness. | Bachelor's Degree | $30,565 | $25,192 |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities. | Bachelor's Degree | $30,527 | $23,125 |
| Psychology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $29,839 | $22,364 |
| Health/Medical Preparatory Programs. | Bachelor's Degree | $29,287 | $23,250 |
| Radio, Television, and Digital Communication. | Bachelor's Degree | $29,198 | $23,146 |
| Biology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $29,021 | $23,229 |
| Fine and Studio Arts. | Bachelor's Degree | $27,629 | $25,000 |
| Anthropology. | Bachelor's Degree | $27,604 | $22,250 |
| Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $26,790 | $26,125 |
| Sociology. | Bachelor's Degree | $26,383 | $19,448 |
| Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $25,874 | not reported |
| English Language and Literature, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $25,836 | $22,250 |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $22,032 | $20,500 |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. | Bachelor's Degree | $21,326 | $24,340 |

## 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 Ball State University by field of study at the official Scorecard: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?150136

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