How much debt do UMass Amherst marketing graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $23,750, which ranks 3rd lowest of 13 marketing bachelor's programs in Massachusetts. That works out to about $252 a month over 10 years.

Is a marketing degree from UMass Amherst worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 41% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 53%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 10% or less.

UMass Amherst Marketing (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do UMass Amherst marketing graduates stay in Massachusetts?

Most do. 81% (98 of 121) were working in Massachusetts one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Marketing
Public university
Amherst, MA
About 204 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

UMass Amherst marketing graduates earn more than graduates of most marketing programs nationally, $58,462 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $23,750 in federal loans, close to the national median of $24,250. It is one of the higher-paying marketing degrees in Massachusetts.

First-year earnings$58,46295th percentile of 471 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$71,26322% more than year one

Median federal debt$23,7503rd lowest of 13 Massachusetts programs

Debt-to-earnings41%Massachusetts median 58%, national 53%

How it compares

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

	UMass Amherst	Massachusetts	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$58,462	$46,491	$44,567
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$71,263	$75,089	$64,125
Median federal debt at graduation	$23,750	$26,500	$24,250
Debt as share of first-year pay	41%	58%	53%
Programs compared		13	471

Five years out, UMass Amherst graduates earn more than the national figure but about $3,826 less than the Massachusetts median. Several Massachusetts programs with higher debt show higher pay by the five-year mark.

Debt and first-year pay at every Massachusetts marketing program

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

UMass AmherstOther Massachusetts 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 22% between the first and fifth year.

UMass Amherst grads, year 1$58,462

UMass Amherst grads, year 5$71,263

All Massachusetts marketing grads, year 5$75,089

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 slightly more in their first year than other graduates. At this program, the outcome does not look worse for students with less money.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$60,290Median debt $25,046

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$57,799Median debt $23,250

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $252 a month, or 5.2% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (155 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	10–19%
Paying down the balance	60–69%
Paused payments (forbearance)	10% or less
In default	10% 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

81% of graduates (98 of 121) were working in Massachusetts one year after graduating. Prices in the Amherst Town area are about the same as the national average.

Careers this field leads to

These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to marketing, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists

$101,810

Median pay in Massachusetts. 39,710 people work in this job in Massachusetts. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 82,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $58,090Top 10%: $166,970

Sales Managers

$191,200

Median pay in Massachusetts. 15,010 people work in this job in Massachusetts. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 47,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $100,510Top 10%: $321,000

Marketing Managers

$212,020

Median pay in Massachusetts. 14,270 people work in this job in Massachusetts. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 34,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $122,350Top 10%: $310,510

Web and Digital Interface Designers

$113,540

Median pay in Massachusetts. 2,740 people work in this job in Massachusetts. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 8,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $71,110Top 10%: $178,050

About UMass Amherst

In-state tuition and fees	$17,772 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$40,449 / year
Average net price after aid	$22,383 / year
Admission rate	60%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	83%
Undergraduate students	23,671

Marketing ranks 14th of 45 bachelor's programs at UMass Amherst by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer Engineering ($89,327), Computer Science ($88,554), and Nursing ($81,452).

Other marketing bachelor's programs near Amherst

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
UMass AmherstAmherst, MA · public		$58,462	$23,750
Assumption UniversityWorcester, MA · private nonprofit	36 mi	$55,314	$27,000
UConnStorrs, CT · public	42 mi	$54,809	$21,889
Central Connecticut StateNew Britain, CT · public	49 mi	$39,477	$23,500
Framingham StateFramingham, MA · public	56 mi	$39,218	$25,962
Bryant UniversitySmithfield, RI · private nonprofit	60 mi	$50,727	$27,000

Common questions

The median graduate earns $58,462 one year after graduating and $71,263 five years after. The median across marketing bachelor's programs in Massachusetts is $46,491.

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 Massachusetts 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 marketing 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

Marketing bachelor's programs in Massachusetts, ranked13 programs by pay and debt Marketing bachelor's programs in the US, ranked471 programs by pay and debt All UMass Amherst programs, ranked45 programs by pay and debt