Elon University Marketing (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

  • Bachelor's in Marketing
  • Private nonprofit university
  • Elon, NC
  • About 144 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Elon University marketing graduates earn more than graduates of most marketing programs nationally, $55,893 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $21,500 in federal loans, close to the national median of $24,250. It is one of the higher-paying marketing degrees in North Carolina.

First-year earnings$55,89392nd percentile of 471 programs nationally
Earnings after 5 years$86,29654% more than year one
Median federal debt$21,5003rd lowest of 10 North Carolina programs
Debt-to-earnings38%North Carolina median 56%, national 53%

How it compares

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

Five years out, Elon University graduates earn more than the national figure and about $27,343 more than the North Carolina median.

Debt and first-year pay at every North Carolina marketing program

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

Elon UniversityOther North Carolina 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 54% between the first and fifth year.

Elon University grads, year 1$55,893
Elon University grads, year 5$86,296
All North Carolina marketing grads, year 5$58,953

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.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$58,615Median debt $21,500
Other graduates, year 1 earnings$56,709Median debt $20,823

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $228 a month, or 4.9% 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, 32 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $76,007.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

23% of graduates (19 of 81) were working in North Carolina one year after graduating. Prices in the Burlington area are about 7% below the national average, so a $55,893 salary here buys what about $59,974 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

$78,410

Median pay in North Carolina. 30,700 people work in this job in North Carolina. 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%: $43,780Top 10%: $155,670

Sales Managers

$150,470

Median pay in North Carolina. 16,920 people work in this job in North Carolina. 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%: $69,350Top 10%: $297,760

Marketing Managers

$165,480

Median pay in North Carolina. 10,790 people work in this job in North Carolina. 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%: $96,760Top 10%: $274,100

Web and Digital Interface Designers

$97,990

Median pay in North Carolina. 3,400 people work in this job in North Carolina. 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%: $44,530Top 10%: $163,850

About Elon University

Marketing ranks 7th of 21 bachelor's programs at Elon University by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer Programming ($79,819), Accounting ($69,764), and Economics ($69,298).

Other marketing bachelor's programs near Elon

Common questions

The median graduate earns $55,893 one year after graduating and $86,296 five years after. The median across marketing bachelor's programs in North Carolina is $44,745.

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 North Carolina 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

  1. U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
  2. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
  3. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
  4. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024

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