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

Is a Theological and Ministerial Studies degree worth the debt?

The figures below lead with the Bachelor's, aggregated across 27 colleges (27 of 27 programs report earnings). Other credential levels are in the table further down.

Median pay · 1 yr after

$29,273

Graduates only, early career.$28,598 two years out.

Median federal debt

$23,456

Federal loans only — not private or Parent PLUS.

Debt vs a year's pay

0.76×

76% of a first year's earnings.

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

The college you pick moves this a lot

The middle 50% of Bachelor's programs in Theological and Ministerial Studies report early-career pay between $26,083 and $33,671 — a spread of $7,588 that depends on the program and who attends it, not the major alone.

25th pct $26,083 median $29,273 75th pct $33,671

By degree level

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

LevelPay · 1yrDebtDebt/pay

Bachelor's 27 colleges $29,273 $23,456 0.76×

Master's 98 colleges $44,174 $42,191 1.03×

Doctoral 8 colleges $57,466 $33,292 1.05×

Professional 9 colleges $42,390 $47,198 1.12×

Where a 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.

Boston College MA $40,529 —

Nazarene Bible College CO $39,270 $37,410 debt

Oklahoma Wesleyan University OK $38,789 $27,000 debt

Hope International University CA $35,221 —

Lincoln Christian University $35,010 $17,151 debt

Concordia University Ann Arbor MI $34,321 $25,000 debt

Concordia University-Wisconsin WI $34,321 $25,000 debt

Northwest University WA $33,021 $25,000 debt

Northwest University-Center for Online and Extended Education WA $33,021 $25,000 debt

Ave Maria University FL $31,775 $20,000 debt

University of Valley Forge PA $31,099 $27,000 debt

Benedictine College KS $30,946 $23,250 debt

Moody Bible Institute IL $29,411 $15,000 debt

University of Northwestern-St Paul MN $29,273 $19,500 debt

Carolina University NC $28,596 $19,691 debt

What these numbers are — and are not

Every figure here is a median across college programs in Theological and Ministerial 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