Loyola Chicago Radio, TV, and Digital Media (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

  • Bachelor's in Radio, Television, and Digital Communication
  • Private nonprofit university
  • Chicago, IL
  • About 36 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Loyola Chicago radio, TV, and digital media graduates earn about what radio, TV, and digital media graduates earn nationally, $26,227 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $25,000 in federal loans, close to the national median of $24,250. Several Illinois programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$26,22726th percentile of 127 programs nationally
Median federal debt$25,0002nd lowest of 8 Illinois programs
Debt-to-earnings95%Illinois median 98%, national 78%

How it compares

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

Debt and first-year pay at every Illinois radio, TV, and digital media program

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

Loyola ChicagoOther Illinois programs

Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $265 a month, or 12.1% 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.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

66% of graduates (25 of 38) were working in Illinois one year after graduating. Prices in the Chicago area are about 4% above the national average, so a $26,227 salary here buys what about $25,317 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 radio, TV, and digital media, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Producers and Directors

$81,080

Median pay in Illinois. 3,170 people work in this job in Illinois. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 12,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $41,250Top 10%: $169,040

Web and Digital Interface Designers

$85,710

Median pay in Illinois. 2,050 people work in this job in Illinois. 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%: $58,090Top 10%: $157,670

News Analysts, Reporters, and Journalists

$60,590

Median pay in Illinois. 1,060 people work in this job in Illinois. 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%: $36,680Top 10%: $140,620

Film and Video Editors

$72,460

Median pay in Illinois. 310 people work in this job in Illinois. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 3,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $46,710Top 10%: $116,720

About Loyola Chicago

Radio, TV, and Digital Media ranks 30th of 30 bachelor's programs at Loyola Chicago by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($76,869), Accounting ($69,965), and Computer and Information Science ($68,950).

Other radio, TV, and digital media bachelor's programs near Chicago

Common questions

The median graduate earns $26,227 one year after graduating. The median across radio, TV, and digital media bachelor's programs in Illinois is $26,845.

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 radio, TV, and digital media 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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