---
title: Is a Public Policy Analysis degree worth the debt?
cip: 4405
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 Public Policy Analysis degree worth the debt?

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

- **Median pay, 1 year after completion:** $37,628 ($39,009 at 2 years)
- **Median federal debt:** $21,000 (federal loans only)
- **Debt-to-earnings:** 0.59× a first year's pay
- **Across-college spread (middle 50%):** $28,969–$43,726 — 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 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Bachelor's | $37,628 | $21,000 | 0.59× | 30 | 30/30 |
| Master's | $58,341 | $41,000 | 0.72× | 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 |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Cornell University (NY) | $65,965 | $15,125 |
| Duke University (NC) | $51,435 | $10,500 |
| University of Chicago (IL) | $51,165 | $17,492 |
| Trinity College (CT) | $50,564 | $23,161 |
| Princeton University (NJ) | $50,510 | $10,527 |
| Dickinson College (PA) | $50,129 | — |
| Brown University (RI) | $49,331 | $10,000 |
| University of Michigan-Ann Arbor (MI) | $44,429 | $21,000 |
| The University of Texas at Dallas (TX) | $41,618 | $16,750 |
| Northwestern University (IL) | $40,701 | $18,750 |
| Brandeis University (MA) | $40,376 | $25,000 |
| DePaul University (IL) | $39,789 | — |
| University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (NC) | $39,751 | $14,000 |
| Washington State University (WA) | $39,057 | — |
| Mount Saint Mary's University (CA) | $37,690 | — |

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/public-policy-analysis.jsonld` · `/education/fields/public-policy-analysis.json`