Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies at Arcadia University

Arcadia's writing program graduates earn significantly less than their Pennsylvania peers, ranking in just the 25th percentile statewide. At $27,390, first-year earnings fall $7,200 below the state median of $34,588—a gap that's hard to ignore when most comparable Pennsylvania programs, including the entire University of Pittsburgh system, see graduates earning $35,000 or more. The program does land almost exactly at the national median, but that's cold comfort if your student is paying Pennsylvania tuition rates for Pennsylvania job market outcomes.

The debt picture offers one bright spot: at $27,000, Arcadia keeps borrowing low (5th percentile nationally), resulting in a manageable 1:1 debt-to-earnings ratio that most graduates should be able to handle. However, the small sample size here matters—we're looking at fewer than 30 graduates, which means these numbers could swing considerably with just a handful of different outcomes. A few graduates landing strong positions or struggling to find work could dramatically shift these averages.

For a Pennsylvania family, this is a tough sell. Your student would be taking on reasonable debt but accepting substantially lower earnings than what other in-state programs deliver. If your child is set on writing studies at Arcadia for specific faculty or program features, the debt load won't bury them. But purely from an earnings standpoint, you're looking at a $30,000+ income gap over the first four years compared to stronger Pennsylvania alternatives.