Is a teacher education degree from University of the Southwest worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 60% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 61%. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several New Mexico programs report higher pay.

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

Q: How much debt do University of the Southwest teacher education graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $24,312, which ranks 4th lowest of 5 teacher education bachelor's programs in New Mexico. That works out to about $258 a month over 10 years.

Q: Do University of the Southwest teacher education graduates stay in New Mexico?

Most do. 73% (19 of 26) were working in New Mexico one year after graduating.

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

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

University of the Southwest teacher education graduates earn about what teacher education graduates earn nationally, $40,282 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $24,312 in federal loans, close to the national median of $26,075. Several New Mexico programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$40,28235th percentile of 655 programs nationally

Median federal debt$24,3124th lowest of 5 New Mexico programs

Debt-to-earnings60%New Mexico median 57%, national 61%

How it compares

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

	University of the Southwest	New Mexico	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$40,282	$41,352	$41,955
Median federal debt at graduation	$24,312	$24,000	$26,075
Debt as share of first-year pay	60%	57%	61%
Programs compared		5	655

Debt and first-year pay at every New Mexico teacher education program

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

University of the SouthwestOther New Mexico 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 $258 a month, or 7.7% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

73% of graduates (19 of 26) were working in New Mexico one year after graduating. Prices in the parts of New Mexico outside metro areas are about 14% below the national average, so a $40,282 salary here buys what about $46,895 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

$74,550

Median pay in New Mexico. 6,210 people work in this job in New Mexico. 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%: $58,120Top 10%: $86,560

Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education

$75,900

Median pay in New Mexico. 8,120 people work in this job in New Mexico. 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%: $59,330Top 10%: $84,170

Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education

$75,240

Median pay in New Mexico. 4,260 people work in this job in New Mexico. 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%: $61,630Top 10%: $82,880

Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education

$44,070

Median pay in New Mexico. 2,490 people work in this job in New Mexico. 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%: $32,270Top 10%: $79,560

About University of the Southwest

Tuition and fees	$16,670 / year
Average net price after aid	$16,927 / year
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	17%
Undergraduate students	346

Teacher Education is the only bachelor's program at University of the Southwest that reports first-year earnings.

Common questions

The median graduate earns $40,282 one year after graduating. The median across teacher education bachelor's programs in New Mexico is $41,352.

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 New Mexico 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 New Mexico, ranked5 programs by pay and debt Teacher Education bachelor's programs in the US, ranked655 programs by pay and debt