How much debt do Governors State accounting graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $22,000, which ranks 8th lowest of 28 accounting bachelor's programs in Illinois. That works out to about $233 a month over 10 years.

Is a accounting degree from Governors State worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 46% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 45%. Compare the cost with other Illinois programs before deciding.

Governors State Accounting (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do Governors State accounting graduates stay in Illinois?

Most do. 94% (45 of 48) were working in Illinois one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Accounting and Related Services
Public university
University Park, IL
About 40 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Governors State accounting graduates earn less than graduates of most accounting programs nationally, $47,836 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $22,000 in federal loans, close to the national median of $24,958. Several Illinois programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$47,83625th percentile of 636 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$64,34835% more than year one

Median federal debt$22,0008th lowest of 28 Illinois programs

Debt-to-earnings46%Illinois median 43%, national 45%

How it compares

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

	Governors State	Illinois	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$47,836	$55,004	$54,059
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$64,348	$76,870	$71,308
Median federal debt at graduation	$22,000	$23,389	$24,958
Debt as share of first-year pay	46%	43%	45%
Programs compared		28	636

Five years out, Governors State graduates earn less than the national figure and about $12,522 less than the Illinois median. Several Illinois programs with higher debt show higher pay by the five-year mark.

Debt and first-year pay at every Illinois accounting program

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

Governors StateOther Illinois 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 35% between the first and fifth year.

Governors State grads, year 1$47,836

Governors State grads, year 5$64,348

All Illinois accounting grads, year 5$76,870

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 $233 a month, or 5.8% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (46 borrowers)	Share
Paying down the balance	20–39%

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

94% of graduates (45 of 48) were working in Illinois one year after graduating. Prices in the Chicago area are about 4% above the national average, so a $47,836 salary here buys what about $46,176 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 accounting, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Accountants and Auditors

$80,230

Median pay in Illinois. 54,930 people work in this job in Illinois. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 115,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $54,510Top 10%: $131,990

Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks

$49,560

Median pay in Illinois. 51,470 people work in this job in Illinois. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 144,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: some college, no degree.

Bottom 10%: $32,360Top 10%: $71,480

Financial Managers

$165,880

Median pay in Illinois. 52,720 people work in this job in Illinois. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 10% from 2025 to 2035, with about 65,600 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $100,070Top 10%: $313,110

Financial and Investment Analysts

$101,180

Median pay in Illinois. 20,520 people work in this job in Illinois. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 24,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $64,700Top 10%: $166,090

About Governors State

Tuition and fees	$12,004 / year
Average net price after aid	$12,329 / year
Admission rate	48%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	22%
Undergraduate students	2,556

Accounting ranks 4th of 15 bachelor's programs at Governors State by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($80,391), Computer Science ($52,115), and Computer and Information Science ($48,567).

Other accounting bachelor's programs near University Park

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Governors StateUniversity Park, IL · public		$47,836	$22,000
Purdue NorthwestHammond, IN · public	16 mi	$49,993	$25,099
Saint Xavier UniversityChicago, IL · private nonprofit	18 mi	$49,533	$23,326
Lewis UniversityRomeoville, IL · private nonprofit	22 mi	$47,616	$23,162
UICChicago, IL · public	29 mi	$65,680	$18,750
Roosevelt UniversityChicago, IL · private nonprofit	30 mi	$55,350	$26,667
DePaul UniversityChicago, IL · private nonprofit	30 mi	$69,250	$24,500
Benedictine UniversityLisle, IL · private nonprofit	30 mi	$54,328	$23,325
North Central CollegeNaperville, IL · private nonprofit	32 mi	$58,717	$26,667

Common questions

The median graduate earns $47,836 one year after graduating and $64,348 five years after. The median across accounting bachelor's programs in Illinois is $55,004.

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 Illinois 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 accounting 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

Accounting bachelor's programs in Illinois, ranked28 programs by pay and debt Accounting bachelor's programs in the US, ranked636 programs by pay and debt All Governors State programs, ranked15 programs by pay and debt