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

Is an English Language and Literature, General degree worth the debt?

The figures below lead with the Bachelor's, aggregated across 531 colleges (531 of 531 programs report earnings). Other credential levels are in the table further down.

Median pay · 1 yr after

$27,864

Graduates only, early career.$29,141 two years out.

Median federal debt

$21,668

Federal loans only — not private or Parent PLUS.

Debt vs a year's pay

0.77×

77% 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 English Language and Literature, General report early-career pay between $24,608 and $31,409 — a spread of $6,801 that depends on the program and who attends it, not the major alone.

25th pct $24,608 median $27,864 75th pct $31,409

By degree level

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

LevelPay · 1yrDebtDebt/pay

Certificate 9 colleges $22,781 — —

Bachelor's 531 colleges $27,864 $21,668 0.77×

Master's 45 colleges $44,793 $32,500 0.74×

Doctoral 17 colleges $50,754 $57,997 1.17×

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

The 15 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.

Georgetown University DC $49,812 $16,000 debt

Yale University CT $48,264 —

Colgate University NY $44,610 $15,875 debt

Stanford University CA $44,251 —

Santa Clara University CA $43,732 —

St. Mary's University TX $43,673 $26,000 debt

Wake Forest University NC $43,018 $19,500 debt

Monmouth University NJ $42,988 $26,000 debt

University of Houston-Clear Lake TX $41,385 $14,125 debt

Trinity College CT $41,078 $22,592 debt

Dartmouth College NH $39,770 $17,000 debt

Virginia Military Institute VA $39,671 —

Northeastern University MA $39,443 $21,250 debt

Northeastern University Professional Programs MA $39,443 $21,250 debt

Seton Hall University NJ $39,262 $24,188 debt

What these numbers are — and are not

Every figure here is a median across college programs in English Language and Literature, General, 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