Western Carolina University Finance (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Finance and Financial Management Services
- Public university
- Cullowhee, NC
- About 85 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
Western Carolina University finance graduates earn less than graduates of most finance programs nationally, $40,575 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $23,625 in federal loans, close to the national median of $23,250. Several North Carolina programs report higher pay.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The North Carolina and national columns are the medians across all finance bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, Western Carolina University graduates earn less than the national figure and about $13,465 less than the North Carolina median.
Debt and first-year pay at every North Carolina finance program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the North Carolina medians.
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 59% between the first and fifth year.
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 $5,253 less in their first year than other graduates. They also borrowed more. Students who expect to rely on grants should weigh this gap.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $250 a month, or 7.4% 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, 44 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $15,333.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
84% of graduates (74 of 88) were working in North Carolina one year after graduating. Prices in the parts of North Carolina outside metro areas are about 12% below the national average, so a $40,575 salary here buys what about $45,894 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 finance, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
General and Operations Managers
$101,950Median pay in North Carolina. 63,740 people work in this job in North Carolina. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 285,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.
Financial Managers
$166,780Median pay in North Carolina. 22,460 people work in this job in North Carolina. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 10% from 2025 to 2035, with about 65,600 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.
Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents
$74,040Median pay in North Carolina. 21,890 people work in this job in North Carolina. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 35,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Financial and Investment Analysts
$102,390Median pay in North Carolina. 12,710 people work in this job in North Carolina. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 24,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
About Western Carolina University
Finance ranks 14th of 41 bachelor's programs at Western Carolina University by first-year earnings. The top three are Electrical Engineering ($69,067), Nursing ($68,774), and Electrical Engineering Technology ($67,003).
Other finance bachelor's programs near Cullowhee
Common questions
The median graduate earns $40,575 one year after graduating and $64,679 five years after. The median across finance bachelor's programs in North Carolina is $51,628.
The median federal loan balance is $23,625, which ranks 7th lowest of 9 finance bachelor's programs in North Carolina. That works out to about $250 a month over 10 years.
It depends on your other options. Debt equals 58% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 44%. Compare the cost with other North Carolina programs before deciding.
Most do. 84% (74 of 88) were working in North Carolina one year after graduating.
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 North Carolina 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 finance 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