Communication and Media Studies at Catawba College

Catawba College's Communication and Media Studies program produces graduates earning $32,323 in their first year—a figure that might initially seem modest but actually places at the median for North Carolina programs in this field. While it trails flagship schools like UNC-Chapel Hill and NC State by roughly $10,000, it matches the typical outcome for communications programs statewide. The catch? These numbers come from a very small graduating class (under 30 students), so they could shift significantly in future years.

The $26,000 median debt load is roughly average for both the program and communications degrees nationally, yielding a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.8. This means graduates owe about 10 months of their first year's salary—manageable territory, though not particularly generous given communications graduates often work entry-level media or public relations roles where advancement matters more than starting salary. For a private college serving a substantial Pell-eligible population (39%), Catawba keeps borrowing reasonable rather than letting it spiral.

The small sample size is the elephant in the room here. With under 30 graduates tracked, one or two high earners or struggling grads could dramatically skew these figures. If your child is passionate about communications and drawn to Catawba's smaller campus environment, the debt burden won't crush them. But given the earnings uncertainty and the availability of stronger-performing public options like Appalachian State ($38,331) at likely lower cost, you'd want concrete reasons—specific faculty mentorship, internship connections, or campus fit—to justify choosing Catawba over more proven alternatives.