---
title: Is a Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities degree worth the debt?
cip: 2401
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 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities degree worth the debt?

Leading with the **Bachelor's**, across **455** colleges (455 of 455 programs report earnings):

- **Median pay, 1 year after completion:** $32,328 ($32,124 at 2 years)
- **Median federal debt:** $22,998 (federal loans only)
- **Debt-to-earnings:** 0.69× a first year's pay
- **Across-college spread (middle 50%):** $27,894–$36,457 — 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 | $27,185 | $8,982 | 0.43× | 19 | 19/19 |
| Associate's | $24,140 | $9,619 | 0.40× | 796 | 796/796 |
| Bachelor's | $32,328 | $22,998 | 0.69× | 455 | 455/455 |
| Master's | $47,226 | $39,444 | 0.75× | 38 | 38/38 |

## 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 |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MA) | $85,273 | $11,935 |
| Georgetown University (DC) | $74,919 | — |
| Champlain College (VT) | $70,375 | $12,500 |
| American Public University System (WV) | $64,720 | — |
| Bentley University (MA) | $62,629 | $26,000 |
| DePaul University (IL) | $59,652 | $37,499 |
| Drexel University (PA) | $52,955 | $24,548 |
| Purdue University-Main Campus (IN) | $49,996 | — |
| North Carolina State University at Raleigh (NC) | $49,578 | $19,028 |
| University of St Thomas (TX) | $49,272 | $23,326 |
| Saint Joseph's University - Philadelphia (PA) | $49,042 | $29,449 |
| Southern New Hampshire University (NH) | $48,678 | $13,023 |
| Southern Methodist University (TX) | $47,744 | — |
| University of Miami (FL) | $47,378 | $26,175 |
| Excelsior University (NY) | $45,508 | $7,925 |

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/liberal-arts-and-sciences-general-studies-and-humanities.jsonld` · `/education/fields/liberal-arts-and-sciences-general-studies-and-humanities.json`