---
title: Is a Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution degree worth the debt?
cip: 3005
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 Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution degree worth the debt?

Leading with the **Bachelor's**, across **7** colleges (7 of 7 programs report earnings):

- **Median pay, 1 year after completion:** $37,050 ($34,886 at 2 years)
- **Median federal debt:** $20,000 (federal loans only)
- **Debt-to-earnings:** 0.62× a first year's pay


**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 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Bachelor's | $37,050 | $20,000 | 0.62× | 7 | 7/7 |
| Master's | $50,938 | $56,673 | 1.07× | 10 | 10/10 |

## 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 |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Georgetown University (DC) | $39,424 | $13,249 |
| George Mason University (VA) | $39,297 | $25,000 |
| University of California-Berkeley (CA) | $37,358 | — |
| University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (NC) | $37,050 | $14,000 |
| Salisbury University (MD) | $32,480 | $20,000 |
| DePaul University (IL) | $26,553 | $24,500 |
| Hamline University (MN) | $24,716 | — |

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/peace-studies-and-conflict-resolution.jsonld` · `/education/fields/peace-studies-and-conflict-resolution.json`