How much debt do Baker College teacher education graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $37,292, which ranks 17th lowest of 17 teacher education bachelor's programs in Michigan. That works out to about $395 a month over 10 years.

Is a teacher education degree from Baker College worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 99% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 61%. Compare the cost with other Michigan programs before deciding.

Baker College Teacher Education (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do Baker College teacher education graduates stay in Michigan?

Most do. 94% (29 of 31) were working in Michigan one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods
Private nonprofit college
Owosso, MI
About 14 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Baker College teacher education graduates earn less than graduates of most teacher education programs nationally, $37,750 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $37,292 in federal loans, more than at 98% of teacher education programs in the country. Several Michigan programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$37,75022nd percentile of 655 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$43,60616% more than year one

Median federal debt$37,29217th lowest of 17 Michigan programs

Debt-to-earnings99%Michigan median 67%, national 61%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Michigan and national columns are the medians across all teacher education bachelor's programs that report the figure.

	Baker College	Michigan	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$37,750	$43,151	$41,955
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$43,606	$46,454	$46,679
Median federal debt at graduation	$37,292	$29,019	$26,075
Debt as share of first-year pay	99%	67%	61%
Programs compared		17	655

Five years out, Baker College graduates earn less than the national figure and about $2,848 less than the Michigan median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Michigan teacher education program

Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Michigan medians.

Baker CollegeOther Michigan programs

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 16% between the first and fifth year.

Baker College grads, year 1$37,750

Baker College grads, year 5$43,606

All Michigan teacher education grads, year 5$46,454

Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $395 a month, or 12.6% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (57 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	20% or less
Paying down the balance	20–39%
Paused payments (forbearance)	20% or less
In default	20% or less

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.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

94% of graduates (29 of 31) were working in Michigan one year after graduating. Prices in the parts of Michigan outside metro areas are about 11% below the national average, so a $37,750 salary here buys what about $42,429 buys in a typical US city.

Careers this field leads to

These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to teacher education, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education

$65,110

Median pay in Michigan. 40,910 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 87,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $47,670Top 10%: $94,680

Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education

$66,030

Median pay in Michigan. 25,540 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 63,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $47,830Top 10%: $98,720

Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education

$63,790

Median pay in Michigan. 15,420 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 38,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $46,530Top 10%: $95,370

Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education

$37,110

Median pay in Michigan. 10,950 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 66,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: associate's degree.

Bottom 10%: $30,310Top 10%: $50,720

About Baker College

Tuition and fees	$13,000 / year
Average net price after aid	$13,157 / year
Admission rate	82%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	36%
Undergraduate students	3,026

Teacher Education ranks 15th of 17 bachelor's programs at Baker College by first-year earnings. The top three are Graphic Communications ($74,387), Nursing ($69,067), and Mechanical Engineering ($68,060).

Other teacher education bachelor's programs near Owosso

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Baker CollegeOwosso, MI · private nonprofit		$37,750	$37,292
UM-FlintFlint, MI · public	24 mi	$41,809	$32,810
Alma CollegeAlma, MI · private nonprofit	37 mi	$45,983	$29,062
Saginaw Valley StateUniversity Center, MI · public	38 mi	$43,151	$31,000
Central Michigan UniversityMount Pleasant, MI · public	52 mi	$45,225	$29,000
Oakland UniversityRochester Hills, MI · public	53 mi	$42,440	$29,019
University of MichiganAnn Arbor, MI · public	54 mi	$45,522	$16,335
Rochester Christian UniversityRochester Hills, MI · private nonprofit	56 mi	$35,163	$25,217
Eastern Michigan UniversityYpsilanti, MI · public	58 mi	$42,791	$28,676

Common questions

The median graduate earns $37,750 one year after graduating and $43,606 five years after. The median across teacher education bachelor's programs in Michigan is $43,151.

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 Michigan 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 teacher education 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

Teacher Education bachelor's programs in Michigan, ranked17 programs by pay and debt Teacher Education bachelor's programs in the US, ranked655 programs by pay and debt All Baker College programs, ranked32 programs by pay and debt