UNT Anthropology (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

  • Bachelor's in Anthropology
  • Public university
  • Denton, TX
  • About 41 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

UNT anthropology graduates earn about what anthropology graduates earn nationally, $28,160 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $21,168 in federal loans, close to the national median of $22,962. Several Texas programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$28,16055th percentile of 166 programs nationally
Earnings after 5 years$45,72062% more than year one
Median federal debt$21,1683rd lowest of 11 Texas programs
Debt-to-earnings75%Texas median 75%, national 81%

How it compares

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

Five years out, UNT graduates earn about the national figure and about the same as the Texas median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Texas anthropology program

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

UNTOther Texas 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 62% between the first and fifth year.

UNT grads, year 1$28,160
UNT grads, year 5$45,720
All Texas anthropology grads, year 5$44,428

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. At this program, the outcome does not look worse for students with less money.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$29,102Median debt $21,500
Other graduates, year 1 earnings$26,439Median debt $20,836

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $224 a month, or 9.5% 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, 21 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $27,131.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

78% of graduates (42 of 54) were working in Texas one year after graduating. Prices in the Dallas area are about 3% above the national average, so a $28,160 salary here buys what about $27,316 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 anthropology, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists

$80,470

Median pay in Texas. 11,920 people work in this job in Texas. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 13% from 2025 to 2035, with about 10,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: doctoral or professional degree.

Bottom 10%: $63,870Top 10%: $144,060

Forensic Science Technicians

$59,870

Median pay in Texas. 1,900 people work in this job in Texas. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 13% from 2025 to 2035, with about 2,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $42,430Top 10%: $82,640

Anthropologists and Archeologists

$67,700

Median pay in Texas. 430 people work in this job in Texas. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 800 openings a year. Typical education to start: master's degree.

Bottom 10%: $57,340Top 10%: $109,270

About UNT

Anthropology ranks 55th of 60 bachelor's programs at UNT by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer Engineering ($78,714), Electrical Engineering ($75,265), and Construction Engineering Technology ($72,266).

Other anthropology bachelor's programs near Denton

Common questions

The median graduate earns $28,160 one year after graduating and $45,720 five years after. The median across anthropology bachelor's programs in Texas is $28,369.

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 Texas 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 anthropology 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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