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

Is an Information Science/Studies degree worth the debt?

The figures below lead with the Bachelor's, aggregated across 136 colleges (136 of 136 programs report earnings). Other credential levels are in the table further down.

Median pay · 1 yr after

$53,732

Graduates only, early career.$59,892 two years out.

Median federal debt

$25,000

Federal loans only — not private or Parent PLUS.

Debt vs a year's pay

0.47×

47% of a first year's earnings.

Typical debt is well under a single year's early-career pay.

The college you pick moves this a lot

The middle 50% of Bachelor's programs in Information Science/Studies report early-career pay between $44,073 and $60,548 — a spread of $16,475 that depends on the program and who attends it, not the major alone.

25th pct $44,073 median $53,732 75th pct $60,548

By degree level

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

LevelPay · 1yrDebtDebt/pay

Associate's 14 colleges $41,003 $21,000 0.51×

Bachelor's 136 colleges $53,732 $25,000 0.47×

Master's 71 colleges $72,151 $43,847 0.71×

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.

Northwestern University IL $94,536 $11,425 debt

University of Michigan-Ann Arbor MI $71,304 $17,592 debt

James Madison University VA $70,020 $19,500 debt

Boston College MA $69,748 $16,803 debt

Drexel University PA $68,852 $29,000 debt

Texas A&M University-College Station TX $68,669 —

University of Maryland-College Park MD $67,391 $19,500 debt

George Washington University DC $67,132 —

Clemson University SC $66,717 $25,225 debt

Strayer University-District of Columbia DC $66,456 $40,250 debt

Strayer University-Virginia VA $66,456 $40,250 debt

Strayer University-Maryland MD $66,456 $40,250 debt

Strayer University-Tennessee TN $66,456 $40,250 debt

Strayer University-Pennsylvania PA $66,456 $40,250 debt

Strayer University-Florida FL $66,456 $40,250 debt

What these numbers are — and are not

Every figure here is a median across college programs in Information Science/Studies, 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