---
title: Southwest Minnesota State University — cost, debt & earnings (College Scorecard)
location: Marshall, MN
control: Public
source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (2026-06-10 release)
sourceUrl: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/
---

# Southwest Minnesota State University

Marshall, MN · Public · Bachelor-granting

> Federal College Scorecard institution **medians** — not a prediction of any one student's outcome, and not a figure for any single program. Earnings/debt cover federally-aided students.

## The bottom line

| Figure | Value | Status |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Typical earnings, 10 yrs after entry | $51,342 | recorded |
| Earnings range (25th–75th pct) | $35,692 – $69,380 | recorded |
| Typical federal debt | $14,250 | recorded |
| Debt of students who withdrew | $8,750 | recorded |
| Completion rate | 45% | recorded |
| Average annual net cost | $24,757 | recorded |
| % earning above a $28k HS-grad wage | 71% | recorded |
| Debt ÷ a year's earnings | 0.28× | derived |
| Earnings premium vs $28k HS benchmark | $23,342 | derived |

**45% of students finish** — the loans are owed whether or not you graduate, so read every figure below next to this number.

Typical **federal** loan debt is $14,250 (≈ 28% of a year's typical earnings here). Note: this counts federal loans only — not private loans, Parent PLUS, or family savings — so true borrowing is usually higher; and because dropouts borrow less, low-completion schools can show a deceptively low debt figure.

## Earnings by major (the number that decides "worth it")

> **Different measure — read on its own terms.** These are median earnings **1 year after completing the program** (early career, graduates only) — NOT the 10-years-after-entry school-wide figure above. Do not compare a program figure to the school figure; compare majors to each other. The Dept. of Education omits programs with too few graduates.

By program, early-career pay ranges from $28,700 to $63,193 across 14 program(s).

| Major | Credential | Pay (1 yr out) | Median debt |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Bachelor's Degree | $63,193 | $13,875 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas. | Master's Degree | $52,562 | not reported |
| Education, General. | Master's Degree | $49,470 | $17,448 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Master's Degree | $46,872 | not reported |
| Finance and Financial Management Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $41,644 | $21,500 |
| Marketing. | Bachelor's Degree | $39,062 | $19,747 |
| Agricultural Business and Management. | Bachelor's Degree | $38,927 | not reported |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Bachelor's Degree | $38,735 | $20,500 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. | Bachelor's Degree | $37,319 | $21,977 |
| Accounting and Related Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $36,831 | not reported |
| Psychology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $35,969 | $25,125 |
| Social Work. | Bachelor's Degree | $33,078 | not reported |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness. | Bachelor's Degree | $30,486 | $18,000 |
| Education, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $28,700 | not reported |

## What this is — and is NOT

Institution-wide medians from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. **Not** a prediction of what you would earn or owe, **not** a figure for any single program (a CS and a fine-arts graduate of the same school diverge enormously), **not** proof the school caused the outcome (selection, not causation), and **not** a "best college" ranking. Explore Southwest Minnesota State University by field of study at the official Scorecard: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?175078

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Structured data (JSON-LD), each figure labeled by epistemic status: `/education/southwest-minnesota-state-university-mn.jsonld` · all schools: `/education`