Southern Illinois University-Carbondale Political Science (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Political Science and Government
- Public university
- Carbondale, IL
- About 19 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
Southern Illinois University-Carbondale political science graduates earn less than graduates of most political science programs nationally, $26,635 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $26,171 in federal loans, more than at 77% of political science 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 political science bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale graduates earn less than the national figure and about $11,260 less than the Illinois median. Several Illinois programs with higher debt show higher pay by the five-year mark.
Debt and first-year pay at every Illinois political science 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.
What graduates earn over time
Pay rises about 88% 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 $277 a month, or 12.5% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
73% of graduates (24 of 33) were working in Illinois one year after graduating. Prices in the parts of Illinois outside metro areas are about 13% below the national average, so a $26,635 salary here buys what about $30,468 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
$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.
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.
Economists
$124,720Median pay nationwide. 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
$103,780Median pay in Illinois. 110 people work in this job in Illinois. 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 Southern Illinois University-Carbondale
Political Science ranks 43rd of 49 bachelor's programs at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale by first-year earnings. The top three are Fire Science ($104,017), Industrial Technology ($73,283), and Electrical Engineering Technology ($72,495).
Common questions
The median graduate earns $26,635 one year after graduating and $50,172 five years after. The median across political science bachelor's programs in Illinois is $34,418.
The median federal loan balance is $26,171, which ranks 15th lowest of 19 political science bachelor's programs in Illinois. That works out to about $277 a month over 10 years.
It depends on your other options. Debt equals 98% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 65%. Compare the cost with other Illinois programs before deciding.
Most do. 73% (24 of 33) 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 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