How much debt do Chestnut Hill College communications graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $27,000, which ranks 16th lowest of 31 communications bachelor's programs in Pennsylvania. That works out to about $286 a month over 10 years.

Is a communications degree from Chestnut Hill College worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 96% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 69%. Compare the cost with other Pennsylvania programs before deciding.

Chestnut Hill College Communications (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Bachelor's in Communication and Media Studies
Private nonprofit college
Philadelphia, PA
About 7 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Chestnut Hill College communications graduates earn less than graduates of most communications programs nationally, $28,212 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $27,000 in federal loans, more than at 75% of communications programs in the country. Several Pennsylvania programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$28,21216th percentile of 577 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$51,01081% more than year one

Median federal debt$27,00016th lowest of 31 Pennsylvania programs

Debt-to-earnings96%Pennsylvania median 82%, national 69%

How it compares

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

	Chestnut Hill College	Pennsylvania	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$28,212	$31,994	$34,574
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$51,010	$51,293	$52,771
Median federal debt at graduation	$27,000	$26,995	$25,000
Debt as share of first-year pay	96%	82%	69%
Programs compared		37	577

Five years out, Chestnut Hill College graduates earn less than the national figure and about the same as the Pennsylvania median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Pennsylvania communications program

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

Chestnut Hill CollegeOther Pennsylvania 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 81% between the first and fifth year.

Chestnut Hill College grads, year 1$28,212

Chestnut Hill College grads, year 5$51,010

All Pennsylvania communications grads, year 5$51,293

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 $286 a month, or 12.2% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

Prices in the Philadelphia area are about 3% above the national average, so a $28,212 salary here buys what about $27,509 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 communications, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Public Relations Specialists

$57,460

Median pay in Pennsylvania. 11,180 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 23,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $32,810Top 10%: $102,330

Fundraisers

$63,730

Median pay in Pennsylvania. 6,180 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 10,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $45,110Top 10%: $98,870

Editors

$63,460

Median pay in Pennsylvania. 3,240 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 7,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $37,240Top 10%: $114,560

Public Relations Managers

$118,050

Median pay in Pennsylvania. 2,210 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 6,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $68,890Top 10%: $206,910

About Chestnut Hill College

Tuition and fees	$39,870 / year
Average net price after aid	$27,970 / year
Admission rate	74%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	49%
Undergraduate students	815

Communications ranks 9th of 9 bachelor's programs at Chestnut Hill College by first-year earnings. The top three are Accounting ($50,408), Business Administration ($48,995), and Criminal Justice ($46,417).

Other communications bachelor's programs near Philadelphia

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Chestnut Hill CollegePhiladelphia, PA · private nonprofit		$28,212	$27,000
Arcadia UniversityGlenside, PA · private nonprofit	3 mi	$27,061	$27,000
La Salle UniversityPhiladelphia, PA · private nonprofit	5 mi	$36,037	$26,924
Saint Joseph's UniversityPhiladelphia, PA · private nonprofit	6 mi	$38,024	$26,990
Villanova UniversityVillanova, PA · private nonprofit	7 mi	$52,294	$26,456
Eastern UniversitySaint Davids, PA · private nonprofit	8 mi	$25,732	$26,000
Temple UniversityPhiladelphia, PA · public	8 mi	$34,496	$24,880
UPennPhiladelphia, PA · private nonprofit	10 mi	$53,022	$15,637
Ursinus CollegeCollegeville, PA · private nonprofit	14 mi	$35,420	$27,000

Common questions

The median graduate earns $28,212 one year after graduating and $51,010 five years after. The median across communications bachelor's programs in Pennsylvania is $31,994.

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 communications 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

Communications bachelor's programs in Pennsylvania, ranked37 programs by pay and debt Communications bachelor's programs in the US, ranked577 programs by pay and debt All Chestnut Hill College programs, ranked9 programs by pay and debt