How much debt do University of Oregon communications graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $16,500, which ranks the lowest of 10 communications bachelor's programs in Oregon. That works out to about $175 a month over 10 years.

Is a communications degree from University of Oregon worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 50% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 69%. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several Oregon programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.

University of Oregon Communications (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Bachelor's in Communication and Media Studies
Public university
Eugene, OR
About 9 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

University of Oregon communications graduates earn about what communications graduates earn nationally, $33,165 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $16,500 in federal loans, less than at 93% of communications programs in the country. Strong value, but not one of the highest-paying communications degrees in Oregon.

First-year earnings$33,16541st percentile of 577 programs nationally

Median federal debt$16,500The lowest of 10 Oregon programs

Debt-to-earnings50%Oregon median 79%, national 69%

How it compares

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

	University of Oregon	Oregon	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$33,165	$32,319	$34,574
Median federal debt at graduation	$16,500	$24,083	$25,000
Debt as share of first-year pay	50%	79%	69%
Programs compared		10	577

Debt and first-year pay at every Oregon communications program

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

University of OregonOther Oregon programs

Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $175 a month, or 6.3% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

Prices in the Eugene area are about 2% above the national average, so a $33,165 salary here buys what about $32,653 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 communications, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Public Relations Specialists

$74,900

Median pay in Oregon. 4,510 people work in this job in Oregon. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 23,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $45,190Top 10%: $123,880

Fundraisers

$64,080

Median pay in Oregon. 2,090 people work in this job in Oregon. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 10,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $48,150Top 10%: $100,890

Editors

$71,540

Median pay in Oregon. 1,110 people work in this job in Oregon. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 7,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $44,660Top 10%: $111,390

Public Relations Managers

$131,190

Median pay in Oregon. 1,410 people work in this job in Oregon. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 6,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $77,070Top 10%: $209,670

About University of Oregon

In-state tuition and fees	$16,137 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$44,598 / year
Average net price after aid	$22,182 / year
Admission rate	88%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	72%
Undergraduate students	20,497

Communications ranks 15th of 34 bachelor's programs at University of Oregon by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer and Information Science ($70,055), Accounting ($58,449), and Architecture ($51,933).

Other communications bachelor's programs near Eugene

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
University of OregonEugene, OR · public		$33,165	$16,500
Oregon StateCorvallis, OR · public	37 mi	$40,737	$21,740
Western Oregon UniversityMonmouth, OR · public	56 mi	$37,600	$21,316

Common questions

The median graduate earns $33,165 one year after graduating. The median across communications bachelor's programs in Oregon is $32,319.

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 Oregon 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 communications 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

Communications bachelor's programs in Oregon, ranked10 programs by pay and debt Communications bachelor's programs in the US, ranked577 programs by pay and debt All University of Oregon programs, ranked34 programs by pay and debt