Is a liberal arts and general studies degree from Blue Mountain Community College worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 62% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 38%. Compare the cost with other Oregon programs before deciding.

Blue Mountain Community College Liberal Arts and General Studies (Associate's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: How much debt do Blue Mountain Community College liberal arts and general studies graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $16,009, which ranks 11th lowest of 12 liberal arts and general studies associate's programs in Oregon. That works out to about $170 a month over 10 years.

Q: Do Blue Mountain Community College liberal arts and general studies graduates stay in Oregon?

Most do. 86% (38 of 44) were working in Oregon one year after graduating.

Associate's in Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities
Public college
Pendleton, OR
About 140 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Blue Mountain Community College liberal arts and general studies graduates earn about what liberal arts and general studies graduates earn nationally, $25,872 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $16,009 in federal loans, more than at 87% of liberal arts and general studies programs in the country. Several Oregon programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$25,87239th percentile of 728 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$43,72669% more than year one

Median federal debt$16,00911th lowest of 12 Oregon programs

Debt-to-earnings62%Oregon median 48%, national 38%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Oregon and national columns are the medians across all liberal arts and general studies associate's programs that report the figure.

	Blue Mountain Community College	Oregon	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$25,872	$26,325	$27,139
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$43,726	$39,410	$40,284
Median federal debt at graduation	$16,009	$12,208	$10,864
Debt as share of first-year pay	62%	48%	38%
Programs compared		12	728

Five years out, Blue Mountain Community College graduates earn more than the national figure and about $4,316 more than the Oregon median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Oregon liberal arts and general studies program

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

Blue Mountain Community CollegeOther Oregon 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 69% between the first and fifth year.

Blue Mountain Community College grads, year 1$25,872

Blue Mountain Community College grads, year 5$43,726

All Oregon liberal arts and general studies grads, year 5$39,410

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 $170 a month, or 7.9% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (58 borrowers)	Share
Paused payments (forbearance)	40–59%

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

86% of graduates (38 of 44) were working in Oregon one year after graduating. Prices in the parts of Oregon outside metro areas are about 3% below the national average, so a $25,872 salary here buys what about $26,627 buys in a typical US city.

About Blue Mountain Community College

In-state tuition and fees	$7,076 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$9,754 / year
Average net price after aid	$13,095 / year
Graduation rate (within 1.5 times the normal program length)	30%
Undergraduate students	962

Liberal Arts and General Studies is the only associate's program at Blue Mountain Community College that reports first-year earnings.

Other liberal arts and general studies associate's programs near Pendleton

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Blue Mountain Community CollegePendleton, OR · public		$25,872	$16,009
Walla Walla Community CollegeWalla Walla, WA · public	38 mi	$24,084	$11,000

Common questions

The median graduate earns $25,872 one year after graduating and $43,726 five years after. The median across liberal arts and general studies associate's programs in Oregon is $26,325.

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 Oregon 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

Liberal Arts and General Studies associate's programs in Oregon, ranked12 programs by pay and debt Liberal Arts and General Studies associate's programs in the US, ranked728 programs by pay and debt