How much debt do Roger Williams University finance graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $26,500, which ranks 3rd lowest of 7 finance bachelor's programs in Rhode Island. That works out to about $281 a month over 10 years.

Is a finance degree from Roger Williams University worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 44% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 44%. Compare the cost with other Rhode Island programs before deciding.

Roger Williams University Finance (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Bachelor's in Finance and Financial Management Services
Private nonprofit university
Bristol, RI
About 44 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Roger Williams University finance graduates earn more than graduates of most finance programs nationally, $60,042 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $26,500 in federal loans, more than at 78% of finance programs in the country. Several Rhode Island programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$60,04276th percentile of 407 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$85,12242% more than year one

Median federal debt$26,5003rd lowest of 7 Rhode Island programs

Debt-to-earnings44%Rhode Island median 44%, national 44%

How it compares

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

	Roger Williams University	Rhode Island	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$60,042	$60,042	$53,373
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$85,122	$86,877	$77,457
Median federal debt at graduation	$26,500	$26,953	$23,250
Debt as share of first-year pay	44%	44%	44%
Programs compared		7	407

Five years out, Roger Williams University graduates earn more than the national figure and about the same as the Rhode Island median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Rhode Island finance program

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

Roger Williams UniversityOther Rhode Island 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 42% between the first and fifth year.

Roger Williams University grads, year 1$60,042

Roger Williams University grads, year 5$85,122

All Rhode Island finance grads, year 5$86,877

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 $281 a month, or 5.6% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (67 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	20% or less
Paying down the balance	40–59%
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

Prices in the Providence area are about 2% above the national average, so a $60,042 salary here buys what about $58,996 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 finance, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

General and Operations Managers

$117,380

Median pay in Rhode Island. 9,150 people work in this job in Rhode Island. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 285,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $64,990Top 10%: $243,520

Financial Managers

$166,940

Median pay in Rhode Island. 2,570 people work in this job in Rhode Island. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 10% from 2025 to 2035, with about 65,600 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $97,180Top 10%: $304,310

Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents

$78,660

Median pay nationwide. 1,780 people work in this job in Rhode Island. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 35,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Financial and Investment Analysts

$100,550

Median pay in Rhode Island. 1,790 people work in this job in Rhode Island. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 24,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $63,050Top 10%: $175,270

About Roger Williams University

Tuition and fees	$44,418 / year
Average net price after aid	$37,999 / year
Admission rate	88%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	69%
Undergraduate students	3,946

Finance ranks 4th of 19 bachelor's programs at Roger Williams University by first-year earnings. The top three are Construction Management ($75,334), Accounting ($66,780), and Mechanical Engineering ($65,396).

Other finance bachelor's programs near Bristol

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Roger Williams UniversityBristol, RI · private nonprofit		$60,042	$26,500
Salve Regina UniversityNewport, RI · private nonprofit	13 mi	$66,034	$27,000
UMass DartmouthNorth Dartmouth, MA · public	13 mi	$54,166	$26,674
Johnson & Wales University-ProvidenceProvidence, RI · private nonprofit	14 mi	$53,555	$27,000
Providence CollegeProvidence, RI · private nonprofit	16 mi	$64,427	$27,000
Rhode Island CollegeProvidence, RI · public	17 mi	$34,991	$23,750
University of Rhode IslandKingston, RI · public	18 mi	$50,529	$23,620
Bryant UniversitySmithfield, RI · private nonprofit	24 mi	$61,993	$26,953
Stonehill CollegeEaston, MA · private nonprofit	30 mi	$58,832	$26,000

Common questions

The median graduate earns $60,042 one year after graduating and $85,122 five years after. The median across finance bachelor's programs in Rhode Island is $60,042.

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 Rhode Island 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 finance 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

Finance bachelor's programs in Rhode Island, ranked7 programs by pay and debt Finance bachelor's programs in the US, ranked407 programs by pay and debt All Roger Williams University programs, ranked19 programs by pay and debt