Bucknell University Economics (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Economics
- Private nonprofit university
- Lewisburg, PA
- About 121 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
Bucknell University economics graduates earn more than graduates of most economics programs nationally, $70,946 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $25,888 in federal loans, more than at 77% of economics programs in the country. It is one of the higher-paying economics degrees in Pennsylvania.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Pennsylvania and national columns are the medians across all economics bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, Bucknell University graduates earn more than the national figure and about $18,609 more than the Pennsylvania median.
Debt and first-year pay at every Pennsylvania economics program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Pennsylvania 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 43% 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 slightly more in their first year than other graduates. At this program, the outcome does not look worse for students with less money.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $274 a month, or 4.6% 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, 20 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $69,467.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
21% of graduates (17 of 81) were working in Pennsylvania one year after graduating. Prices in the parts of Pennsylvania outside metro areas are about 10% below the national average, so a $70,946 salary here buys what about $78,540 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 economics, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education
$78,800Median pay in Pennsylvania. 52,240 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. 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.
Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists
$68,760Median pay in Pennsylvania. 31,040 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 82,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Data Scientists
$106,850Median pay in Pennsylvania. 13,810 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 35% from 2025 to 2035, with about 24,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Social Science Research Assistants
$54,610Median pay in Pennsylvania. 860 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 4,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
About Bucknell University
Economics ranks 7th of 14 bachelor's programs at Bucknell University by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer Engineering ($90,171), Chemical Engineering ($80,653), and Civil Engineering ($80,231).
Other economics bachelor's programs near Lewisburg
Common questions
The median graduate earns $70,946 one year after graduating and $101,580 five years after. The median across economics bachelor's programs in Pennsylvania is $53,995.
The median federal loan balance is $25,888, which ranks 11th lowest of 20 economics bachelor's programs in Pennsylvania. That works out to about $274 a month over 10 years.
On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 36% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 43%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 20% or less. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several Pennsylvania programs report higher pay.
Many leave. 21% (17 of 81) were working in Pennsylvania one year after graduating.
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 Pennsylvania 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 economics 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