University of Central Missouri Liberal Arts and General Studies (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

  • Bachelor's in Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities
  • Public university
  • Warrensburg, MO
  • About 69 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

University of Central Missouri liberal arts and general studies graduates earn about what liberal arts and general studies graduates earn nationally, $36,845 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $27,106 in federal loans, close to the national median of $27,000. Several Missouri programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$36,84553rd percentile of 395 programs nationally
Earnings after 5 years$48,24031% more than year one
Median federal debt$27,1065th lowest of 12 Missouri programs
Debt-to-earnings74%Missouri median 79%, national 73%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Missouri and national columns are the medians across all liberal arts and general studies bachelor's programs that report the figure.

Five years out, University of Central Missouri graduates earn about the national figure and about the same as the Missouri median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Missouri liberal arts and general studies program

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

University of Central MissouriOther Missouri 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 31% between the first and fifth year.

University of Central Missouri grads, year 1$36,845
University of Central Missouri grads, year 5$48,240
All Missouri liberal arts and general studies grads, year 5$48,426

Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.

Does family income change the outcome?

Graduates who received Pell Grants, which go to students from lower-income families, earned more in their first year than other graduates, but borrowed more: a median of $31,000 against $21,500.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$37,119Median debt $31,000
Other graduates, year 1 earnings$32,972Median debt $21,500

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $287 a month, or 9.3% 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. Separately, 23 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $12,175.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

85% of graduates (95 of 112) were working in Missouri one year after graduating. Prices in the parts of Missouri outside metro areas are about 16% below the national average, so a $36,845 salary here buys what about $43,908 buys in a typical US city.

About University of Central Missouri

Liberal Arts and General Studies ranks 19th of 36 bachelor's programs at University of Central Missouri by first-year earnings. The top three are Construction Management ($74,177), Nursing ($70,840), and Quality Control and Safety Technology ($67,263).

Other liberal arts and general studies bachelor's programs near Warrensburg

Common questions

The median graduate earns $36,845 one year after graduating and $48,240 five years after. The median across liberal arts and general studies bachelor's programs in Missouri is $37,589.

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 Missouri 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 liberal arts and general studies program.

Sources

  1. U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
  2. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
  3. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
  4. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024

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