How much debt do Connecticut College economics graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $25,206, which ranks 5th lowest of 7 economics bachelor's programs in Connecticut. That works out to about $267 a month over 10 years.

Is a economics degree from Connecticut College worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 40% 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 Connecticut programs report higher pay.

Connecticut College Economics (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Bachelor's in Economics
Private nonprofit college
New London, CT
About 75 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Connecticut College economics graduates earn more than graduates of most economics programs nationally, $62,732 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $25,206 in federal loans, close to the national median of $22,717. Several Connecticut programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$62,73278th percentile of 338 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$109,56075% more than year one

Median federal debt$25,2065th lowest of 7 Connecticut programs

Debt-to-earnings40%Connecticut median 40%, national 43%

How it compares

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

	Connecticut College	Connecticut	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$62,732	$62,732	$51,725
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$109,560	$98,366	$77,760
Median federal debt at graduation	$25,206	$24,125	$22,717
Debt as share of first-year pay	40%	40%	43%
Programs compared		7	338

Five years out, Connecticut College graduates earn more than the national figure and about $11,194 more than the Connecticut median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Connecticut economics program

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

Connecticut CollegeOther Connecticut 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 75% between the first and fifth year.

Connecticut College grads, year 1$62,732

Connecticut College grads, year 5$109,560

All Connecticut economics grads, year 5$98,366

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 $2,876 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$62,090Median debt $22,526

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$64,966Median debt $25,975

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $267 a month, or 5.1% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (53 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	20% or less
Paying down the balance	60–79%
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

Prices in the Norwich area are about the same as the national average.

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

$80,970

Median pay in Connecticut. 14,800 people work in this job in Connecticut. 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%: $51,710Top 10%: $113,610

Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists

$77,740

Median pay in Connecticut. 9,930 people work in this job in Connecticut. 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%: $46,280Top 10%: $138,980

Data Scientists

$126,340

Median pay in Connecticut. 1,760 people work in this job in Connecticut. 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.

Bottom 10%: $75,700Top 10%: $204,680

Social Science Research Assistants

$60,110

Median pay in Connecticut. 50 people work in this job in Connecticut. 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.

Bottom 10%: $35,860Top 10%: $88,270

About Connecticut College

Tuition and fees	$67,242 / year
Average net price after aid	$36,175 / year
Admission rate	37%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	82%
Undergraduate students	1,937

Economics ranks 2nd of 12 bachelor's programs at Connecticut College by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer Science ($86,403), Economics ($62,732), and Political Science ($46,588).

Other economics bachelor's programs near New London

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Connecticut CollegeNew London, CT · private nonprofit		$62,732	$25,206
UConnStorrs, CT · public	31 mi	$52,227	$22,907
Trinity CollegeHartford, CT · private nonprofit	39 mi	$71,191	$21,500
Central Connecticut StateNew Britain, CT · public	40 mi	$41,910	$25,237
Quinnipiac UniversityHamden, CT · private nonprofit	41 mi	$48,340	$25,000
Yale UniversityNew Haven, CT · private nonprofit	43 mi	$82,617	$13,250

Common questions

The median graduate earns $62,732 one year after graduating and $109,560 five years after. The median across economics bachelor's programs in Connecticut is $62,732.

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 Connecticut 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

Economics bachelor's programs in Connecticut, ranked7 programs by pay and debt Economics bachelor's programs in the US, ranked338 programs by pay and debt All Connecticut College programs, ranked12 programs by pay and debt