How much debt do Carthage College marketing graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $27,000, which ranks 12th lowest of 13 marketing bachelor's programs in Wisconsin. That works out to about $286 a month over 10 years.

Is a marketing degree from Carthage College worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 54% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 53%. Compare the cost with other Wisconsin programs before deciding.

Carthage College Marketing (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do Carthage College marketing graduates stay in Wisconsin?

Many leave. 38% (38 of 101) were working in Wisconsin one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Marketing
Private nonprofit college
Kenosha, WI
About 62 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Carthage College marketing graduates earn more than graduates of most marketing programs nationally, $50,175 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $27,000 in federal loans, more than at 79% of marketing programs in the country. Several Wisconsin programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$50,17578th percentile of 471 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$68,10036% more than year one

Median federal debt$27,00012th lowest of 13 Wisconsin programs

Debt-to-earnings54%Wisconsin median 54%, national 53%

How it compares

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

	Carthage College	Wisconsin	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$50,175	$46,934	$44,567
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$68,100	$68,100	$64,125
Median federal debt at graduation	$27,000	$26,000	$24,250
Debt as share of first-year pay	54%	54%	53%
Programs compared		13	471

Five years out, Carthage College graduates earn more than the national figure and about the same as the Wisconsin median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Wisconsin marketing program

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

Carthage CollegeOther Wisconsin 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 36% between the first and fifth year.

Carthage College grads, year 1$50,175

Carthage College grads, year 5$68,100

All Wisconsin marketing grads, year 5$68,100

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 $7,171 less in their first year than other graduates. Students who expect to rely on grants should weigh this gap.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$46,220Median debt $27,000

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$53,391Median debt $26,000

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $286 a month, or 6.8% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (91 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	20% or less
Paying down the balance	40–59%
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. Separately, 26 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $53,672.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

38% of graduates (38 of 101) were working in Wisconsin one year after graduating. Prices in the Kenosha area are about 1% above the national average, so a $50,175 salary here buys what about $49,620 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 marketing, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists

$64,800

Median pay in Wisconsin. 15,600 people work in this job in Wisconsin. 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.

Bottom 10%: $42,640Top 10%: $117,910

Sales Managers

$134,870

Median pay in Wisconsin. 10,480 people work in this job in Wisconsin. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 47,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $76,330Top 10%: $222,110

Marketing Managers

$133,600

Median pay in Wisconsin. 4,890 people work in this job in Wisconsin. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 34,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $83,990Top 10%: $211,990

Web and Digital Interface Designers

$95,340

Median pay in Wisconsin. 880 people work in this job in Wisconsin. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 8,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $57,980Top 10%: $138,410

About Carthage College

Tuition and fees	$38,750 / year
Average net price after aid	$26,565 / year
Admission rate	87%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	64%
Undergraduate students	2,660

Marketing ranks 6th of 22 bachelor's programs at Carthage College by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($74,265), Accounting ($61,887), and Finance ($58,543).

Other marketing bachelor's programs near Kenosha

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Carthage CollegeKenosha, WI · private nonprofit		$50,175	$27,000
UW-ParksideKenosha, WI · public	2 mi	$40,916	$20,900
Marquette UniversityMilwaukee, WI · private nonprofit	29 mi	$53,415	$26,000
UW-MilwaukeeMilwaukee, WI · public	32 mi	$45,966	$26,000
Carroll UniversityWaukesha, WI · private nonprofit	33 mi	$43,841	$26,250
Loyola ChicagoChicago, IL · private nonprofit	44 mi	$51,065	$25,000
Concordia University-WisconsinMequon, WI · private nonprofit	44 mi	$39,614	$26,000
Northeastern Illinois UniversityChicago, IL · public	45 mi	$43,320	$15,000
UW-WhitewaterWhitewater, WI · public	49 mi	$47,664	$26,000

Common questions

The median graduate earns $50,175 one year after graduating and $68,100 five years after. The median across marketing bachelor's programs in Wisconsin is $46,934.

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 Wisconsin 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 marketing 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

Marketing bachelor's programs in Wisconsin, ranked13 programs by pay and debt Marketing bachelor's programs in the US, ranked471 programs by pay and debt All Carthage College programs, ranked22 programs by pay and debt