Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies at Aquinas College

A first-year salary of $17,827 for Aquinas College writing graduates is troublingly low—barely above poverty wages and less than typical full-time retail work. Even accounting for Michigan's lower cost of living compared to coastal states, this falls $6,400 below the state median for writing programs and $10,600 below the national benchmark. Among Michigan's 22 writing programs, this ranks in just the 25th percentile, trailing not only flagship schools but also comparable regional institutions like Calvin University, where graduates earn $26,637. The $26,844 in median debt isn't excessive by national standards, but it becomes problematic when paired with earnings that would make loan payments genuinely difficult to manage.

The small sample size here—fewer than 30 graduates—means these numbers could swing significantly year to year, so this shouldn't be taken as definitive. However, the gap is large enough to warrant serious questions about outcomes. Whether this reflects regional job market challenges, the types of writing careers graduates pursue immediately after college, or program-specific factors, parents should investigate why Aquinas graduates start so far behind their peers.

Before committing, request multi-year outcome data from Aquinas and explore whether graduates see significant salary growth after that first year. If this represents a typical pattern rather than a statistical blip, families should consider whether starting at nearly half the state average makes financial sense, particularly when stronger alternatives exist within Michigan's public university system.