---
title: Is a General Sales, Merchandising and Related Marketing Operations degree worth the debt?
cip: 5218
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 General Sales, Merchandising and Related Marketing Operations degree worth the debt?

Leading with the **Bachelor's**, across **30** colleges (30 of 30 programs report earnings):

- **Median pay, 1 year after completion:** $48,012 ($47,944 at 2 years)
- **Median federal debt:** $21,819 (federal loans only)
- **Debt-to-earnings:** 0.46× a first year's pay
- **Across-college spread (middle 50%):** $40,256–$54,952 — 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 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Certificate | $12,702 | — | — | 3 | 3/3 |
| Associate's | $25,795 | $18,604 | 0.77× | 7 | 7/7 |
| Bachelor's | $48,012 | $21,819 | 0.46× | 30 | 30/30 |
| Master's | $72,657 | $72,478 | 1.08× | 3 | 3/3 |

## 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 |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Western Governors University (UT) | $81,520 | $20,671 |
| Baylor University (TX) | $71,388 | $20,500 |
| Bellevue University (NE) | $70,231 | — |
| Texas A&M University-College Station (TX) | $64,426 | $20,787 |
| Purdue University-Main Campus (IN) | $56,811 | $19,451 |
| Kennesaw State University (GA) | $56,385 | $19,375 |
| Weber State University (UT) | $56,374 | $17,500 |
| Bowling Green State University-Main Campus (OH) | $55,026 | $25,000 |
| Tuskegee University (AL) | $54,728 | $27,000 |
| William Paterson University of New Jersey (NJ) | $54,414 | — |
| Fordham University (NY) | $52,937 | — |
| University of Wisconsin-Madison (WI) | $52,840 | $18,737 |
| University of Minnesota-Twin Cities (MN) | $50,056 | $19,500 |
| University of Akron Main Campus (OH) | $49,591 | $25,750 |
| University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh (WI) | $48,122 | $21,500 |

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/general-sales-merchandising-and-related-marketing-operations.jsonld` · `/education/fields/general-sales-merchandising-and-related-marketing-operations.json`