American Public University System Liberal Arts and General Studies (Associate's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Associate's in Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities
- Private for-profit university
- Charles Town, WV
- About 1,612 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
American Public University System liberal arts and general studies graduates earn more than graduates of most liberal arts and general studies programs nationally, $52,108 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $6,125 in federal loans, less than at 93% of liberal arts and general studies programs in the country. It is one of the higher-paying liberal arts and general studies degrees in West Virginia.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The West Virginia and national columns are the medians across all liberal arts and general studies associate's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, American Public University System graduates earn more than the national figure and about $29,878 more than the West Virginia median.
Debt and first-year pay at every West Virginia liberal arts and general studies program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the West Virginia medians.
Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.
What graduates earn over time
Pay rises about 24% between the first and fifth year.
Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.
Does family income change the outcome?
Graduates who received Pell Grants, which go to students from lower-income families, earned about the same in their first year as other graduates, but borrowed more: a median of $6,625 against $5,500.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $65 a month, or 1.5% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.
The government publishes these as ranges to protect privacy. They were measured in 2018 to 2020, partly during the pandemic pause on federal loan payments, so the forbearance share may be higher than usual. Separately, 75 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $7,848.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
Prices in the Washington area are about 9% above the national average, so a $52,108 salary here buys what about $47,856 buys in a typical US city.
About American Public University System
Liberal Arts and General Studies ranks 1st of 11 associate's programs at American Public University System by first-year earnings. The top three are Liberal Arts and General Studies ($52,108), Business Administration ($47,518), and Criminal Justice ($46,978).
Other liberal arts and general studies associate's programs near Charles Town
Common questions
The median graduate earns $52,108 one year after graduating and $64,517 five years after. The median across liberal arts and general studies associate's programs in West Virginia is $28,134.
The median federal loan balance is $6,125, which ranks the lowest of 9 liberal arts and general studies associate's programs in West Virginia. That works out to about $65 a month over 10 years.
On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 12% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 38%.
About this data
- Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid (grants or loans).
- Earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school. Graduates who went straight to further study are not included.
- Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
- Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of West Virginia comparisons when their main campus is in another state.
- Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
- School-level numbers like tuition, admission rate, and graduation rate are for the whole school, not the liberal arts and general studies program.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
- Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
- NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024