---
title: Is an Area Studies degree worth the debt?
cip: 0501
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 Area Studies degree worth the debt?

Leading with the **Bachelor's**, across **72** colleges (72 of 72 programs report earnings):

- **Median pay, 1 year after completion:** $30,317 ($33,325 at 2 years)
- **Median federal debt:** $19,000 (federal loans only)
- **Debt-to-earnings:** 0.63× a first year's pay
- **Across-college spread (middle 50%):** $27,085–$36,522 — 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 | $30,317 | $19,000 | 0.63× | 72 | 72/72 |
| Master's | $48,121 | $50,000 | 1.28× | 9 | 9/9 |

## 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 |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Siena Heights University (MI) | $50,370 | — |
| Dartmouth College (NH) | $47,302 | $16,520 |
| Bowdoin College (ME) | $46,244 | $24,000 |
| New York University (NY) | $44,822 | $19,500 |
| Nevada State University (NV) | $44,178 | $23,861 |
| Duke University (NC) | $43,489 | — |
| Barnard College (NY) | $42,983 | $19,000 |
| University of Missouri-Columbia (MO) | $42,527 | $21,000 |
| University of California-Berkeley (CA) | $40,373 | $14,839 |
| Miami University-Oxford (OH) | $40,022 | $20,526 |
| Brandeis University (MA) | $38,853 | $26,000 |
| Fordham University (NY) | $38,846 | $26,000 |
| La Salle University (PA) | $37,984 | — |
| Williams College (MA) | $37,948 | — |
| Brown University (RI) | $37,471 | $12,000 |

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/area-studies.jsonld` · `/education/fields/area-studies.json`