---
title: Is a Community Organization and Advocacy degree worth the debt?
cip: 4402
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 a Community Organization and Advocacy degree worth the debt?

Leading with the **Bachelor's**, across **22** colleges (22 of 22 programs report earnings):

- **Median pay, 1 year after completion:** $32,728 ($34,586 at 2 years)
- **Median federal debt:** $23,302 (federal loans only)
- **Debt-to-earnings:** 0.64× a first year's pay
- **Across-college spread (middle 50%):** $29,969–$38,294 — 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 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Associate's | $27,236 | $12,855 | 0.56× | 6 | 6/6 |
| Bachelor's | $32,728 | $23,302 | 0.64× | 22 | 22/22 |
| Master's | $43,709 | $41,000 | 0.94× | 11 | 11/11 |

## Where a 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 |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Northwestern University (IL) | $65,015 | $13,500 |
| Central Michigan University (MI) | $41,663 | $26,500 |
| Metropolitan College of New York (NY) | $41,131 | $42,500 |
| Empire State University (NY) | $38,496 | $19,000 |
| University of Phoenix-Arizona (AZ) | $38,488 | $43,997 |
| University of Phoenix-California | $38,488 | $43,997 |
| Springfield College (MA) | $37,713 | $23,302 |
| Springfield College-Regional Online and Continuing Education (MA) | $37,713 | $23,302 |
| Siena Heights University (MI) | $34,516 | $15,625 |
| Providence College (RI) | $33,803 | — |
| University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh (WI) | $33,146 | $22,000 |
| Rasmussen University-Minnesota (MN) | $32,311 | — |
| California State University-Dominguez Hills (CA) | $32,068 | $16,250 |
| Boricua College (NY) | $32,040 | $7,407 |
| Grand Canyon University (AZ) | $31,651 | $36,645 |

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/community-organization-and-advocacy.jsonld` · `/education/fields/community-organization-and-advocacy.json`