Olivet Nazarene University Economics (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Economics
- Private nonprofit university
- Bourbonnais, IL
- About 15 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
Olivet Nazarene University economics graduates earn about what economics graduates earn nationally, $54,169 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $27,000 in federal loans, more than at 85% of economics programs in the country. Several Illinois programs report higher pay.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Illinois and national columns are the medians across all economics bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Debt and first-year pay at every Illinois economics program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Illinois medians.
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 $286 a month, or 6.3% 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
50% of graduates (18 of 36) were working in Illinois one year after graduating. Prices in the Kankakee area are about 4% below the national average, so a $54,169 salary here buys what about $56,195 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 economics, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education
$79,990Median pay in Illinois. 44,670 people work in this job in Illinois. 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.
Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists
$79,120Median pay in Illinois. 40,560 people work in this job in Illinois. 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.
Data Scientists
$106,560Median pay in Illinois. 10,520 people work in this job in Illinois. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 35% from 2025 to 2035, with about 24,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Social Science Research Assistants
$64,890Median pay in Illinois. 250 people work in this job in Illinois. 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.
About Olivet Nazarene University
Economics ranks 3rd of 14 bachelor's programs at Olivet Nazarene University by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($67,670), Engineering ($66,394), and Economics ($54,169).
Other economics bachelor's programs near Bourbonnais
Common questions
The median graduate earns $54,169 one year after graduating. The median across economics bachelor's programs in Illinois is $47,048.
The median federal loan balance is $27,000, which ranks 12th lowest of 13 economics bachelor's programs in Illinois. That works out to about $286 a month over 10 years.
It depends on your other options. Debt equals 50% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 43%. Compare the cost with other Illinois programs before deciding.
Most do. 50% (18 of 36) were working in Illinois 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 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 economics 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