Saginaw Valley State Political Science (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Political Science and Government
- Public university
- University Center, MI
- About 17 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
Saginaw Valley State political science graduates earn about what political science graduates earn nationally, $35,059 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $30,596 in federal loans, more than at 98% of political science programs in the country. Several Michigan programs report higher pay.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Michigan and national columns are the medians across all political science bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, Saginaw Valley State graduates earn less than the national figure and about $5,604 less than the Michigan median.
Debt and first-year pay at every Michigan political science program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Michigan 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 41% 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 $324 a month, or 11.1% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
Prices in the Saginaw area are about 9% below the national average, so a $35,059 salary here buys what about $38,573 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
$66,030Median pay in Michigan. 25,540 people work in this job in Michigan. 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
$60,210Median pay in Michigan. 750 people work in this job in Michigan. 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
$106,350Median pay in Michigan. 320 people work in this job in Michigan. 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
$86,290Median pay in Michigan. 180 people work in this job in Michigan. 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 Saginaw Valley State
Political Science ranks 22nd of 28 bachelor's programs at Saginaw Valley State by first-year earnings. The top three are Electrical Engineering ($78,950), Mechanical Engineering ($76,823), and Nursing ($76,244).
Other political science bachelor's programs near University Center
Common questions
The median graduate earns $35,059 one year after graduating and $49,431 five years after. The median across political science bachelor's programs in Michigan is $33,927.
The median federal loan balance is $30,596, which ranks 14th lowest of 14 political science bachelor's programs in Michigan. That works out to about $324 a month over 10 years.
It depends on your other options. Debt equals 87% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 65%. Compare the cost with other Michigan programs before deciding.
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 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