How much debt do Metropolitan State University marketing graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $27,000, which ranks 14th lowest of 17 marketing bachelor's programs in Minnesota. That works out to about $286 a month over 10 years.

Is a marketing degree from Metropolitan State University worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 55% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 53%. Compare the cost with other Minnesota programs before deciding.

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

Q: Do Metropolitan State University marketing graduates stay in Minnesota?

Most do. 87% (60 of 69) were working in Minnesota one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Marketing
Public university
Saint Paul, MN
About 36 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Metropolitan State University marketing graduates earn more than graduates of most marketing programs nationally, $49,439 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $27,000 in federal loans, more than at 79% of marketing programs in the country. Several Minnesota programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$49,43975th percentile of 471 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$61,04023% more than year one

Median federal debt$27,00014th lowest of 17 Minnesota programs

Debt-to-earnings55%Minnesota median 51%, national 53%

How it compares

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

	Metropolitan State University	Minnesota	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$49,439	$49,439	$44,567
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$61,040	$65,966	$64,125
Median federal debt at graduation	$27,000	$25,000	$24,250
Debt as share of first-year pay	55%	51%	53%
Programs compared		17	471

Five years out, Metropolitan State University graduates earn less than the national figure and about $4,926 less than the Minnesota median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Minnesota marketing program

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

Metropolitan State UniversityOther Minnesota 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.

Metropolitan State University grads, year 1$49,439

Metropolitan State University grads, year 5$61,040

All Minnesota marketing grads, year 5$65,966

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 $286 a month, or 6.9% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (60 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	20% or less
Paying down the balance	20–39%
Paused payments (forbearance)	20% or less
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.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

87% of graduates (60 of 69) were working in Minnesota one year after graduating. Prices in the Minneapolis area are about 5% above the national average, so a $49,439 salary here buys what about $47,165 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

$87,510

Median pay in Minnesota. 21,280 people work in this job in Minnesota. 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%: $50,400Top 10%: $143,180

Sales Managers

$151,670

Median pay in Minnesota. 11,240 people work in this job in Minnesota. 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%: $79,900Top 10%: $258,460

Marketing Managers

$173,300

Median pay in Minnesota. 8,500 people work in this job in Minnesota. 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%: $103,160Top 10%: $303,350

Web and Digital Interface Designers

$82,650

Median pay in Minnesota. 1,520 people work in this job in Minnesota. 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%: $47,190Top 10%: $133,710

About Metropolitan State University

Tuition and fees	$9,840 / year
Average net price after aid	$16,863 / year
Admission rate	99%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	44%
Undergraduate students	5,616

Marketing ranks 13th of 26 bachelor's programs at Metropolitan State University by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($77,421), Computer Science ($72,865), and Information Science ($64,382).

Other marketing bachelor's programs near Saint Paul

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Metropolitan State UniversitySaint Paul, MN · public		$49,439	$27,000
Concordia University-Saint PaulSaint Paul, MN · private nonprofit	4 mi	$48,007	$26,500
University of St Thomas (Minnesota)Saint Paul, MN · private nonprofit	6 mi	$50,563	$27,000
University of Northwestern-St PaulSaint Paul, MN · private nonprofit	7 mi	$51,013	$19,056
University of MinnesotaMinneapolis, MN · public	8 mi	$59,609	$22,750
Augsburg UniversityMinneapolis, MN · private nonprofit	8 mi	$47,563	$25,000
North Central UniversityMinneapolis, MN · private nonprofit	9 mi	$49,715	$21,500
Capella UniversityMinneapolis, MN · private for-profit	10 mi	$55,495	$45,406

Common questions

The median graduate earns $49,439 one year after graduating and $61,040 five years after. The median across marketing bachelor's programs in Minnesota is $49,439.

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 Minnesota 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 Minnesota, ranked17 programs by pay and debt Marketing bachelor's programs in the US, ranked471 programs by pay and debt All Metropolitan State University programs, ranked26 programs by pay and debt