How much debt do Georgia State marketing graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $25,000, which ranks 5th lowest of 16 marketing bachelor's programs in Georgia. That works out to about $265 a month over 10 years.

Is a marketing degree from Georgia State worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 62% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 53%. Compare the cost with other Georgia programs before deciding.

Georgia State Marketing (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do Georgia State marketing graduates stay in Georgia?

Most do. 86% (320 of 370) were working in Georgia one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Marketing
Public university
Atlanta, GA
About 276 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Georgia State marketing graduates earn less than graduates of most marketing programs nationally, $40,414 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $25,000 in federal loans, close to the national median of $24,250. Several Georgia programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$40,41423rd percentile of 471 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$65,89663% more than year one

Median federal debt$25,0005th lowest of 16 Georgia programs

Debt-to-earnings62%Georgia median 60%, national 53%

How it compares

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

	Georgia State	Georgia	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$40,414	$42,494	$44,567
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$65,896	$58,231	$64,125
Median federal debt at graduation	$25,000	$25,995	$24,250
Debt as share of first-year pay	62%	60%	53%
Programs compared		16	471

Five years out, Georgia State graduates earn about the national figure and about $7,665 more than the Georgia median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Georgia marketing program

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

Georgia StateOther Georgia 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 63% between the first and fifth year.

Georgia State grads, year 1$40,414

Georgia State grads, year 5$65,896

All Georgia marketing grads, year 5$58,231

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 $1,964 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$39,655Median debt $25,284

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$41,619Median debt $24,922

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $265 a month, or 7.9% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (258 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	5–9%
Paying down the balance	20–24%
Paused payments (forbearance)	25–29%
In default	5% 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, 78 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $11,154.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

86% of graduates (320 of 370) were working in Georgia one year after graduating. Prices in the Atlanta 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 marketing, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists

$75,850

Median pay in Georgia. 27,810 people work in this job in Georgia. 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%: $37,700Top 10%: $148,910

Sales Managers

$159,890

Median pay in Georgia. 17,690 people work in this job in Georgia. 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%: $79,560Top 10%: $292,490

Marketing Managers

$160,760

Median pay in Georgia. 8,510 people work in this job in Georgia. 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%: $94,390Top 10%: $277,180

Web and Digital Interface Designers

$103,810

Median pay in Georgia. 2,800 people work in this job in Georgia. 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%: $54,910Top 10%: $172,950

About Georgia State

In-state tuition and fees	$8,664 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$24,840 / year
Average net price after aid	$15,931 / year
Admission rate	55%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	53%
Undergraduate students	26,623

Marketing ranks 16th of 43 bachelor's programs at Georgia State by first-year earnings. The top three are Diagnostic and Treatment Professions ($78,175), Nursing ($78,165), and Computer Science ($66,803).

Other marketing bachelor's programs near Atlanta

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Georgia StateAtlanta, GA · public		$40,414	$25,000
Clayton StateMorrow, GA · public	11 mi	$39,557	$30,896
Kennesaw StateKennesaw, GA · public	23 mi	$47,158	$25,198
University of West GeorgiaCarrollton, GA · public	43 mi	$40,562	$26,625
University of North GeorgiaDahlonega, GA · public	58 mi	$43,504	$21,500
Berry CollegeMount Berry, GA · private nonprofit	59 mi	$45,374	$26,000
University of GeorgiaAthens, GA · public	60 mi	$51,951	$20,000

Common questions

The median graduate earns $40,414 one year after graduating and $65,896 five years after. The median across marketing bachelor's programs in Georgia is $42,494.

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 Georgia 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 Georgia, ranked16 programs by pay and debt Marketing bachelor's programs in the US, ranked471 programs by pay and debt All Georgia State programs, ranked46 programs by pay and debt