Is a communications degree from Northern Michigan University worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 84% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 69%. Compare the cost with other Michigan programs before deciding.

Northern Michigan University Communications (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: How much debt do Northern Michigan University communications graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $27,000, which ranks 10th lowest of 18 communications bachelor's programs in Michigan. That works out to about $286 a month over 10 years.

Bachelor's in Communication and Media Studies
Public university
Marquette, MI
About 11 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Northern Michigan University communications graduates earn about what communications graduates earn nationally, $32,091 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $27,000 in federal loans, more than at 75% of communications programs in the country. Several Michigan programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$32,09135th percentile of 577 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$34,1056% more than year one

Median federal debt$27,00010th lowest of 18 Michigan programs

Debt-to-earnings84%Michigan median 78%, national 69%

How it compares

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

	Northern Michigan University	Michigan	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$32,091	$36,017	$34,574
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$34,105	$48,259	$52,771
Median federal debt at graduation	$27,000	$26,875	$25,000
Debt as share of first-year pay	84%	78%	69%
Programs compared		18	577

Five years out, Northern Michigan University graduates earn less than the national figure and about $14,154 less than the Michigan median. Several Michigan programs with higher debt show higher pay by the five-year mark.

Debt and first-year pay at every Michigan communications program

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

Northern Michigan UniversityOther Michigan 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 6% between the first and fifth year.

Northern Michigan University grads, year 1$32,091

Northern Michigan University grads, year 5$34,105

All Michigan communications grads, year 5$48,259

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 10.7% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (28 borrowers)	Share
Paying down the balance	40–59%

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

Prices in the parts of Michigan outside metro areas are about 11% below the national average, so a $32,091 salary here buys what about $36,069 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 communications, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Public Relations Specialists

$65,300

Median pay in Michigan. 7,510 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 23,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $38,560Top 10%: $117,290

Fundraisers

$66,130

Median pay in Michigan. 3,170 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 10,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $43,620Top 10%: $106,100

Editors

$63,090

Median pay in Michigan. 1,690 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 7,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $33,230Top 10%: $99,980

Public Relations Managers

$117,900

Median pay in Michigan. 1,720 people work in this job in Michigan. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 6,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $70,680Top 10%: $213,360

About Northern Michigan University

In-state tuition and fees	$14,277 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$19,773 / year
Average net price after aid	$14,085 / year
Admission rate	84%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	52%
Undergraduate students	6,556

Communications ranks 17th of 26 bachelor's programs at Northern Michigan University by first-year earnings. The top three are Construction Management ($75,226), Nursing ($68,846), and Finance ($57,281).

Common questions

The median graduate earns $32,091 one year after graduating and $34,105 five years after. The median across communications bachelor's programs in Michigan is $36,017.

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 Michigan 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 communications 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

Communications bachelor's programs in Michigan, ranked18 programs by pay and debt Communications bachelor's programs in the US, ranked577 programs by pay and debt All Northern Michigan University programs, ranked31 programs by pay and debt