College Scorecard · field of study · all U.S. colleges

Is an Agricultural Production Operations degree worth the debt?

The figures below lead with the Bachelor's, aggregated across 12 colleges (12 of 12 programs report earnings). Other credential levels are in the table further down.

Median pay · 1 yr after

$31,684

Graduates only, early career.$33,187 two years out.

Median federal debt

$20,387

Federal loans only — not private or Parent PLUS.

Debt vs a year's pay

0.64×

64% of a first year's earnings.

Typical debt is under a year's early-career pay.

The college you pick moves this a lot

The middle 50% of Bachelor's programs in Agricultural Production Operations report early-career pay between $25,702 and $40,720 — a spread of $15,018 that depends on the program and who attends it, not the major alone.

25th pct $25,702 median $31,684 75th pct $40,720

By degree level

Each level is a separate decision — more schooling usually means more pay and more debt.

LevelPay · 1yrDebtDebt/pay

Associate's 11 colleges $29,873 $11,314 0.40×

Bachelor's 12 colleges $31,684 $20,387 0.64×

Where an Bachelor's in this field reports the highest early-career pay

The 12 programs with the highest reported pay one year after completion. This reflects who enrolls and where they live as much as the program itself — it is not a causal quality ranking.

North Dakota State University-Main Campus ND $51,496 $21,500 debt

Purdue University-Main Campus IN $48,121 $13,250 debt

Washington State University WA $41,571 $17,395 debt

Mississippi State University MS $40,436 —

Eastern Kentucky University KY $36,121 $20,387 debt

University of California-Davis CA $33,073 $10,999 debt

University of Kentucky KY $30,296 $19,500 debt

Clemson University SC $26,805 $22,625 debt

University of New Hampshire-Main Campus NH $26,570 $24,737 debt

SUNY Morrisville NY $23,096 $27,000 debt

University of Massachusetts-Amherst MA $21,022 $19,979 debt

Delaware Valley University PA $18,863 $26,500 debt

What these numbers are — and are not

Every figure here is a median across college programs in Agricultural Production Operations, from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. It is not a prediction of what you would earn (your college, effort, and local job market vary enormously — see the spread above), not lifetime earnings (it is measured 1–2 years after completion, early career), not proof the major caused the outcome (who enters a field differs by field — selection, not causation), and not a "best majors" ranking: earnings are one dimension of worth, not the whole of it. Teaching and social work pay far less than the fields at the top of this list and matter enormously. Earnings cover federally-aided completers at programs large enough to report.

Also available: structured data (JSON-LD) · plain text · JSON. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard — Field of Study (2026-06-10 release). · explore this field on the official Scorecard