---
title: Is a Health/Medical Preparatory Programs degree worth the debt?
cip: 5111
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 Health/Medical Preparatory Programs degree worth the debt?

Leading with the **Bachelor's**, across **37** colleges (37 of 37 programs report earnings):

- **Median pay, 1 year after completion:** $27,550 ($28,538 at 2 years)
- **Median federal debt:** $23,250 (federal loans only)
- **Debt-to-earnings:** 0.87× a first year's pay
- **Across-college spread (middle 50%):** $22,864–$30,149 — 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 | $21,993 | $6,472 | 0.39× | 3 | 3/3 |
| Associate's | $22,061 | $9,641 | 0.43× | 15 | 15/15 |
| Bachelor's | $27,550 | $23,250 | 0.87× | 37 | 37/37 |

## 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 |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pfeiffer University (NC) | $59,369 | — |
| Manchester University (IN) | $38,516 | $24,250 |
| Kent State University at Ashtabula (OH) | $33,320 | $26,000 |
| Kent State University at Kent (OH) | $33,320 | $26,000 |
| Drexel University (PA) | $32,968 | $23,000 |
| Weber State University (UT) | $32,778 | — |
| Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MA) | $32,005 | $27,000 |
| Arizona State University Campus Immersion (AZ) | $30,934 | $22,935 |
| Arizona State University Digital Immersion (AZ) | $30,934 | $22,935 |
| Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania (PA) | $30,149 | $26,000 |
| Ball State University (IN) | $29,287 | $23,250 |
| University of South Alabama (AL) | $28,875 | $28,000 |
| Aurora University (IL) | $28,843 | $19,050 |
| Saginaw Valley State University (MI) | $28,647 | $30,625 |
| Grand Valley State University (MI) | $28,629 | $25,017 |

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/health-medical-preparatory-programs.jsonld` · `/education/fields/health-medical-preparatory-programs.json`