---
title: Is an Apparel and Textiles degree worth the debt?
cip: 1909
source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard — Field of Study (2026-06-10 release)
sourceId: src:doe:college-scorecard:field-of-study:2026-06-10
---

# Is an Apparel and Textiles degree worth the debt?

Leading with the **Bachelor's**, across **56** colleges (56 of 56 programs report earnings):

- **Median pay, 1 year after completion:** $36,316 ($35,327 at 2 years)
- **Median federal debt:** $22,975 (federal loans only)
- **Debt-to-earnings:** 0.62× a first year's pay
- **Across-college spread (middle 50%):** $31,763–$39,053 — the program you choose moves the number this much.


**How to read this:** these are MEDIANS across college programs, measured **1–2 years after completion** (early career, graduates only) — NOT lifetime earnings, and NOT comparable to a college's 10-years-after-entry figure. They cover **federally-aided completers at programs large enough to report**; small programs are suppressed. A field median is not a prediction of your outcome, not causal (who enters a field differs by field), and **not a "best majors" ranking** — earnings are one dimension of worth. Verify by field at the official College Scorecard (https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/).

## By degree level

| Level | Pay (1yr) | Federal debt | Debt/pay | Colleges | Programs reporting |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Bachelor's | $36,316 | $22,975 | 0.62× | 56 | 56/56 |

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

Reflects who enrolls and where, not causal program quality.

| College | Pay (1yr) | Federal debt |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Cornell University (NY) | $55,049 | — |
| Indiana University-Bloomington (IN) | $46,519 | $19,500 |
| University of Delaware (DE) | $44,866 | $22,250 |
| Ohio University-Eastern Campus (OH) | $42,157 | $23,750 |
| Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus (OH) | $42,157 | $23,750 |
| Ohio University-Southern Campus (OH) | $42,157 | $23,750 |
| Ohio University-Lancaster Campus (OH) | $42,157 | $23,750 |
| Ohio University-Main Campus (OH) | $42,157 | $23,750 |
| Ohio University-Zanesville Campus (OH) | $42,157 | $23,750 |
| Fashion Institute of Technology (NY) | $42,008 | $19,500 |
| Iowa State University (IA) | $41,681 | $21,560 |
| University of Wisconsin-Stout (WI) | $39,900 | $25,000 |
| Florida State University (FL) | $39,397 | $17,750 |
| North Dakota State University-Main Campus (ND) | $39,136 | $21,500 |
| Northern Illinois University (IL) | $39,025 | — |

RECORDED College Scorecard figures + one DERIVED ratio (debt-to-earnings). Informs and compares; not advice on what to major in. Each college's full record: `/education/<slug>`.

Structured data: `/education/fields/apparel-and-textiles.jsonld` · `/education/fields/apparel-and-textiles.json`