Which Missouri Southern State bachelor's program has the lowest debt?

Biology graduates leave with a median of $17,750 in federal loans, the lowest among 12 Missouri Southern State bachelor's programs that report debt.

How much does Missouri Southern State cost?

In-state tuition and fees are $8,960 a year, and $17,080 for out-of-state students. After grants and scholarships, the average net price is $12,007 a year.

How many Missouri Southern State programs report graduate pay?

13 bachelor's programs, 3 associate's programs, and one certificate program at Missouri Southern State report first-year pay, and 16 of them also report federal debt.

Missouri Southern State Programs, Ranked by Graduate Pay and Debt

Missouri Southern State University
Public university
Joplin, MO
3,019 undergraduates

College Scorecard June 2026 release

The short answer

13 Missouri Southern State bachelor's programs report what graduates earn. Nursing pays the most in the first year ($62,273), and Social Work the least ($27,936). The median program pays $34,465. Missouri Southern State also has 3 associate's programs and one certificate program that report pay.

In-state tuition and fees$8,960Per year. Out-of-state $17,080

Average net price after aid$12,007Per year

Graduation rate42%Within 6 years

Admission rate97%Of applicants

All 13 bachelor's programs, ranked

Each figure is the median for the program's graduates. "Rank in Missouri" compares first-year pay with the same field's bachelor's programs across Missouri. Programs that don't report a figure are listed last when you sort by it.

#	Program	Year 1 pay	Year 5 pay	Debt	Rank in Missouri
1	NursingAbout 15 graduates a year	$62,273	$66,025	$25,774	24th of 26
2	Other Health ProfessionsAbout 4 graduates a year	$52,539	$56,099	$21,463	1st of 1
3	BusinessAbout 189 graduates a year	$44,262	$57,377	$20,737	7th of 9
4	Liberal Arts and General StudiesAbout 80 graduates a year	$36,783	$40,509	$31,000	8th of 12
5	Teacher EducationAbout 88 graduates a year	$36,345	$39,648	$21,850	7th of 20
6	PsychologyAbout 31 graduates a year	$34,647	$42,457	$23,609	5th of 23
7	Kinesiology and Exercise ScienceAbout 26 graduates a year	$34,465	$45,715	$24,947	6th of 13
8	EducationGraduates a year not reported	$34,166	Not reported	$19,722	3rd of 6
9	Criminal JusticeAbout 33 graduates a year	$33,167	$43,976	$24,120	14th of 16
10	BiologyAbout 46 graduates a year	$31,149	$55,730	$17,750	18th of 21
11	CommunicationsAbout 9 graduates a year	$30,201	$53,540	$18,350	10th of 11
12	Fine and Studio ArtsAbout 15 graduates a year	$29,309	$31,724	Not reported	2nd of 9
13	Social WorkAbout 15 graduates a year	$27,936	Not reported	$25,983	9th of 9

Program names link to the program's own page, and Missouri ranks link to the full ranking for the field. A program gets its own page when it reports both pay and debt and at least five Missouri programs in the field do too.

Some nursing bachelor's programs are for nurses who are already licensed and working (RN-to-BSN). College Scorecard counts them with programs for new students, and their graduates' pay reflects years of nursing experience, so high pay at a program here may not mean higher starting pay for a new nurse.

All 3 associate's programs, ranked

Each figure is the median for the program's graduates. "Rank in Missouri" compares first-year pay with the same field's associate's programs across Missouri. Programs that don't report a figure are listed last when you sort by it.

#	Program	Year 1 pay	Year 5 pay	Debt	Rank in Missouri
1	Dental Hygiene and AssistingAbout 27 graduates a year	$59,420	$61,244	$25,374	3rd of 4
2	Diagnostic and Treatment ProfessionsAbout 18 graduates a year	$53,927	$51,315	$13,375	4th of 13
3	Criminal JusticeAbout 30 graduates a year	$31,103	$42,119	$23,147	2nd of 2

One certificate program

Each figure is the median for the program's graduates. "Rank in Missouri" compares first-year pay with the same field's certificate programs across Missouri.

Program	Year 1 pay	Year 5 pay	Debt	Rank in Missouri
Criminal JusticeAbout 71 graduates a year	$34,058	$40,880	$18,649	6th of 6

Program names link to the program's own page, and Missouri ranks link to the full ranking for the field.

Quick picks: bachelor's programs

Highest first-year pay

Nursing$62,273
Other Health Professions$52,539
Business$44,262
Liberal Arts and General Studies$36,783
Teacher Education$36,345

Lowest median debt

Biology$17,750
Communications$18,350
Education$19,722
Business$20,737
Other Health Professions$21,463

Largest programs

BusinessAbout 189 graduates a year
Teacher EducationAbout 88 graduates a year
Liberal Arts and General StudiesAbout 80 graduates a year
BiologyAbout 46 graduates a year
Criminal JusticeAbout 33 graduates a year

Common questions

Nursing graduates earn a median of $62,273 in their first year, the most of 13 Missouri Southern State bachelor's programs that report pay.

About this data

Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid, and earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school.
Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
Tuition, net price, graduation rate, and admission rate are for the whole school, not one program.
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 Missouri rankings when their main campus is in another state.
Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago.

Sources

U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
NCES, IPEDS tuition and fees, 2023-24, for in-district tuition labels