How much debt do University of Dubuque teacher education graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $28,109, which ranks 18th lowest of 22 teacher education bachelor's programs in Iowa. That works out to about $298 a month over 10 years.

Is a teacher education degree from University of Dubuque worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 73% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 61%. Compare the cost with other Iowa programs before deciding.

University of Dubuque Teacher Education (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Bachelor's in Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods
Private nonprofit university
Dubuque, IA
About 9 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

University of Dubuque teacher education graduates earn less than graduates of most teacher education programs nationally, $38,602 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $28,109 in federal loans, more than at 86% of teacher education programs in the country. Several Iowa programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$38,60225th percentile of 655 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$42,70911% more than year one

Median federal debt$28,10918th lowest of 22 Iowa programs

Debt-to-earnings73%Iowa median 63%, national 61%

How it compares

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

	University of Dubuque	Iowa	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$38,602	$42,758	$41,955
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$42,709	$46,456	$46,679
Median federal debt at graduation	$28,109	$27,000	$26,075
Debt as share of first-year pay	73%	63%	61%
Programs compared		22	655

Five years out, University of Dubuque graduates earn less than the national figure and about $3,747 less than the Iowa median. Several Iowa programs with higher debt show higher pay by the five-year mark.

Debt and first-year pay at every Iowa teacher education program

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

University of DubuqueOther Iowa 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 11% between the first and fifth year.

University of Dubuque grads, year 1$38,602

University of Dubuque grads, year 5$42,709

All Iowa teacher education grads, year 5$46,456

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 $298 a month, or 9.3% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (37 borrowers)	Share
Paying down the balance	40–59%

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 Dubuque area are about 13% below the national average, so a $38,602 salary here buys what about $44,203 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 teacher education, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education

$60,580

Median pay in Iowa. 17,300 people work in this job in Iowa. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 87,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $47,260Top 10%: $77,400

Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education

$61,200

Median pay in Iowa. 12,310 people work in this job in Iowa. 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.

Bottom 10%: $47,480Top 10%: $79,270

Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education

$60,450

Median pay in Iowa. 6,270 people work in this job in Iowa. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 38,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $40,920Top 10%: $79,110

Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education

$33,830

Median pay in Iowa. 5,910 people work in this job in Iowa. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 66,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: associate's degree.

Bottom 10%: $27,730Top 10%: $48,390

About University of Dubuque

Tuition and fees	$42,095 / year
Average net price after aid	$23,386 / year
Admission rate	89%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	40%
Undergraduate students	1,440

Teacher Education ranks 7th of 10 bachelor's programs at University of Dubuque by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($66,628), Accounting ($51,359), and Business Administration ($50,268).

Other teacher education bachelor's programs near Dubuque

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
University of DubuqueDubuque, IA · private nonprofit		$38,602	$28,109
Clarke UniversityDubuque, IA · private nonprofit	Under 1 mi	$42,204	$27,000
Loras CollegeDubuque, IA · private nonprofit	Under 1 mi	$40,328	$27,000
UW-PlattevillePlatteville, WI · public	19 mi	$39,290	$26,000
Cornell CollegeMount Vernon, IA · private nonprofit	54 mi	$42,756	$27,000
Mount Mercy UniversityCedar Rapids, IA · private nonprofit	60 mi	$43,810	$30,687

Common questions

The median graduate earns $38,602 one year after graduating and $42,709 five years after. The median across teacher education bachelor's programs in Iowa is $42,758.

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 Iowa 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 teacher education 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

Teacher Education bachelor's programs in Iowa, ranked22 programs by pay and debt Teacher Education bachelor's programs in the US, ranked655 programs by pay and debt All University of Dubuque programs, ranked10 programs by pay and debt