Which University of South Dakota major has the lowest debt?

Economics graduates leave with a median of $20,819 in federal loans, the lowest among 21 University of South Dakota bachelor's programs that report debt.

How much does University of South Dakota cost?

In-state tuition and fees are $9,432 a year, and $12,942 for out-of-state students. After grants and scholarships, the average net price is $19,858 a year.

How many University of South Dakota programs report graduate pay?

22 bachelor's programs at University of South Dakota report first-year pay, and 21 of them also report federal debt.

University of South Dakota Programs, Ranked by Graduate Pay and Debt

Public university
Vermillion, SD
5,439 undergraduates

College Scorecard June 2026 release

The short answer

22 University of South Dakota bachelor's programs report what graduates earn. Nursing pays the most in the first year ($71,758), and Fine and Studio Arts the least ($25,327). The median program pays $41,867.

In-state tuition and fees$9,432Per year. Out-of-state $12,942

Average net price after aid$19,858Per year

Graduation rate60%Within 6 years

Admission rate99%Of applicants

All 22 bachelor's programs, ranked

Each figure is the median for the program's graduates. "Rank in South Dakota" compares first-year pay with the same field's bachelor's programs across South Dakota. Programs that don't report a figure are listed last when you sort by it.

#	Program	Year 1 pay	Year 5 pay	Debt	Rank in South Dakota
1	NursingAbout 162 graduates a year	$71,758	$73,993	$28,644	2nd of 7
2	Dental Hygiene and AssistingAbout 32 graduates a year	$61,265	$61,969	$27,000	1st of 1
3	AccountingAbout 57 graduates a year	$57,234	$59,423	$25,793	1st of 4
4	EconomicsAbout 22 graduates a year	$52,857	$74,965	$20,819	1st of 2
5	FinanceAbout 55 graduates a year	$49,472	$69,362	$24,320	1st of 2
6	MarketingAbout 34 graduates a year	$48,060	$64,279	$26,000	1st of 2
7	Business AdministrationAbout 80 graduates a year	$47,107	$62,800	$22,950	3rd of 8
8	Special EducationAbout 14 graduates a year	$46,439	$47,089	$27,000	2nd of 3
9	Health SciencesAbout 77 graduates a year	$44,109	$56,837	$27,000	1st of 1
10	Teacher EducationAbout 75 graduates a year	$43,790	$46,742	$27,000	6th of 8
11	Subject-Area Teacher EducationAbout 6 graduates a year	$42,543	$48,120	$27,000	3rd of 4
12	Mental Health and Addiction ServicesAbout 54 graduates a year	$41,191	$45,559	$26,000	1st of 1
13	Criminal JusticeAbout 55 graduates a year	$40,402	$56,807	$25,000	2nd of 3
14	Liberal Arts and General StudiesAbout 45 graduates a year	$35,907	Not reported	$30,092	3rd of 3
15	CommunicationsAbout 51 graduates a year	$35,792	$52,291	$26,000	2nd of 2
16	TheatreAbout 8 graduates a year	$33,852	$28,318	Not reported	1st of 1
17	Political ScienceAbout 22 graduates a year	$31,973	$50,941	$26,000	3rd of 3
18	PsychologyAbout 82 graduates a year	$31,696	$51,388	$24,593	4th of 5
19	BiologyAbout 62 graduates a year	$30,167	$64,695	$23,250	4th of 4
20	HistoryAbout 10 graduates a year	$28,431	$44,104	$27,000	2nd of 2
21	EnglishAbout 19 graduates a year	$26,957	$44,704	$26,000	3rd of 3
22	Fine and Studio ArtsAbout 20 graduates a year	$25,327	$42,651	$27,000	1st of 1

Program names link to the program's own page, and South Dakota ranks link to the full ranking for the field. A program gets its own page when it reports both pay and debt and at least five South Dakota programs in the field do too.

Some nursing bachelor's programs are for nurses who are already licensed and working (RN-to-BSN). College Scorecard counts them with programs for new students, and their graduates' pay reflects years of nursing experience, so high pay at a program here may not mean higher starting pay for a new nurse.

One more bachelor's program reports debt but not pay, so it isn't listed.

Quick picks

Highest first-year pay

Nursing$71,758
Dental Hygiene and Assisting$61,265
Accounting$57,234
Economics$52,857
Finance$49,472

Lowest median debt

Economics$20,819
Business Administration$22,950
Biology$23,250
Finance$24,320
Psychology$24,593

Largest programs

NursingAbout 162 graduates a year
PsychologyAbout 82 graduates a year
Business AdministrationAbout 80 graduates a year
Health SciencesAbout 77 graduates a year
Teacher EducationAbout 75 graduates a year

Common questions

Nursing graduates earn a median of $71,758 in their first year, the most of 22 University of South Dakota bachelor's programs that report pay.

About this data

Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid, and earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school.
Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
Tuition, net price, graduation rate, and admission rate are for the whole school, not one program.
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 South Dakota rankings when their main campus is in another state.
Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago.

Sources

U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
NCES, IPEDS tuition and fees, 2023-24, for in-district tuition labels