How much debt do FAMU journalism graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $27,393, which ranks 5th lowest of 5 journalism bachelor's programs in Florida. That works out to about $290 a month over 10 years.

Is a journalism degree from FAMU worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 75% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 67%. Compare the cost with other Florida programs before deciding.

FAMU Journalism (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do FAMU journalism graduates stay in Florida?

Most do. 67% (36 of 54) were working in Florida one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Journalism
Public university
Tallahassee, FL
About 54 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

FAMU journalism graduates earn about what journalism graduates earn nationally, $36,356 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $27,393 in federal loans, more than at 93% of journalism programs in the country. Several Florida programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$36,35662nd percentile of 170 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$44,80623% more than year one

Median federal debt$27,3935th lowest of 5 Florida programs

Debt-to-earnings75%Florida median 55%, national 67%

How it compares

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

	FAMU	Florida	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$36,356	$38,164	$34,515
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$44,806	$58,392	$53,282
Median federal debt at graduation	$27,393	$22,644	$24,500
Debt as share of first-year pay	75%	55%	67%
Programs compared		5	170

Five years out, FAMU graduates earn less than the national figure and about $13,586 less than the Florida median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Florida journalism program

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

FAMUOther Florida 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 23% between the first and fifth year.

FAMU grads, year 1$36,356

FAMU grads, year 5$44,806

All Florida journalism grads, year 5$58,392

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 $290 a month, or 9.6% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (56 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	20% or less
Paying down the balance	20% or less
Paused payments (forbearance)	40–59%
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 $20,322.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

67% of graduates (36 of 54) were working in Florida one year after graduating. Prices in the Tallahassee area are about 6% below the national average, so a $36,356 salary here buys what about $38,710 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 journalism, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Editors

$73,950

Median pay in Florida. 3,790 people work in this job in Florida. 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%: $43,230Top 10%: $121,380

Photographers

$42,640

Median pay in Florida. 4,390 people work in this job in Florida. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 10,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent.

Bottom 10%: $29,990Top 10%: $80,400

Writers and Authors

$68,080

Median pay in Florida. 3,010 people work in this job in Florida. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 11,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $41,650Top 10%: $102,540

News Analysts, Reporters, and Journalists

$58,730

Median pay in Florida. 2,490 people work in this job in Florida. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 3,400 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $39,380Top 10%: $122,560

About FAMU

In-state tuition and fees	$5,785 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$17,725 / year
Average net price after aid	$13,739 / year
Admission rate	21%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	53%
Undergraduate students	7,582

Journalism ranks 6th of 19 bachelor's programs at FAMU by first-year earnings. The top three are Construction Engineering Technology ($70,804), Nursing ($64,772), and Computer and Information Science ($55,617).

Common questions

The median graduate earns $36,356 one year after graduating and $44,806 five years after. The median across journalism bachelor's programs in Florida is $38,164.

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 Florida 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 journalism 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

Journalism bachelor's programs in Florida, ranked5 programs by pay and debt Journalism bachelor's programs in the US, ranked170 programs by pay and debt All FAMU programs, ranked19 programs by pay and debt