Middle Tennessee State Political Science (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Political Science and Government
- Public university
- Murfreesboro, TN
- About 52 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
Middle Tennessee State political science graduates earn less than graduates of most political science programs nationally, $31,012 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $23,250 in federal loans, close to the national median of $23,500. Several Tennessee programs report higher pay.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Tennessee and national columns are the medians across all political science bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, Middle Tennessee State graduates earn less than the national figure and about $1,590 less than the Tennessee median. Several Tennessee programs with higher debt show higher pay by the five-year mark.
Debt and first-year pay at every Tennessee political science program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Tennessee medians.
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 60% between the first and fifth year.
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 $246 a month, or 9.5% 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
82% of graduates (46 of 56) were working in Tennessee one year after graduating. Prices in the Nashville area are about 4% below the national average, so a $31,012 salary here buys what about $32,191 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 political science, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education
$61,860Median pay in Tennessee. 21,230 people work in this job in Tennessee. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 63,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Social Science Research Assistants
$46,410Median pay in Tennessee. 140 people work in this job in Tennessee. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 4,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Economists
$117,650Median pay in Tennessee. 80 people work in this job in Tennessee. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 1,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: master's degree.
Political Scientists
$142,080Median pay nationwide. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 400 openings a year. Typical education to start: master's degree.
About Middle Tennessee State
Political Science ranks 37th of 51 bachelor's programs at Middle Tennessee State by first-year earnings. The top three are Construction Management ($71,762), Mechatronics and Robotics Engineering ($71,664), and Engineering-Related Fields ($67,431).
Other political science bachelor's programs near Murfreesboro
Common questions
The median graduate earns $31,012 one year after graduating and $49,519 five years after. The median across political science bachelor's programs in Tennessee is $34,635.
The median federal loan balance is $23,250, which ranks 5th lowest of 10 political science bachelor's programs in Tennessee. That works out to about $246 a month over 10 years.
It depends on your other options. Debt equals 75% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 65%. Compare the cost with other Tennessee programs before deciding.
Most do. 82% (46 of 56) were working in Tennessee one year after graduating.
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 Tennessee 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 political science 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