Solid graduate outcomes with earnings above the peer average.
What graduates earn 10 years after enrollment.
Annual salary at 10 years
Lower quartile earnings
Upper quartile earnings
How graduate earnings grow in the decade after enrollment.
Central Michigan University graduates experience steady earnings growth as they advance in their careers. Median earnings increase from $46,567 at six years after enrollment to $50,848 at eight years and $55,874 at ten years, representing 19.9% growth from the six-year to ten-year mark.
How outcomes compare to similar institutions.
Graduate earnings exceed the peer average, indicating above-typical outcomes for this institution type.
Financial justification for the investment.
Healthy debt burden. Most graduates can manage $27,000 in debt with typical earnings.
Central Michigan University graduates carry median debt of $27,000, which ranks at the 4th percentile nationally, indicating higher debt levels than most institutions. The debt distribution ranges from $9,326 at the 25th percentile to $31,000 at the 75th percentile, showing variation in borrowing patterns among graduates.
Central Michigan University demonstrates above-average return on investment through solid earnings performance relative to educational costs. Return performance ranks at the 62.8th percentile nationally, indicating outcomes that exceed typical expectations for similar public institutions.
Approximately 25.3% of Central Michigan graduates continue to graduate or professional study, based on program mix analysis with high confidence. Thi...
Program mix explains much of the earnings story.
Central Michigan's strongest return outcomes concentrate in technology and specialized business programs. Computer Science leads with $89,004 median earnings, followed by Information Resources Management at $82,839 and Digital Marketing at $69,950.
Business Administration, the largest program with 354 graduates, produces solid $64,881 earnings. In contrast, education programs like Agricultural Teacher Education generate $43,844 earnings, while specialized health programs like Audiology demonstrate strong value scores despite moderate earnings of $52,249.
See which programs drive the strongest earnings and career trajectories
Earnings variation at Central Michigan shows meaningful differences in career outcomes across academic programs. The distribution spans from $38,496 at the 25th percentile to $78,697 at the 75th percentile, creating a 2.0:1 ratio between top and bottom quartiles.
