Construction Management at Central Connecticut State University

Central Connecticut State's Construction Management program starts graduates about $7,000 below the national median for this field, which explains its 13th percentile national ranking. The silver lining? It's the only Construction Management bachelor's program in Connecticut, and the debt load of $22,402 is manageable—graduates owe just one-third of their first-year salary. The 24% earnings bump to $81,318 by year four shows healthy career progression, though that still trails the typical starting salary for construction management grads nationally.

The real question is whether Connecticut's construction market justifies this trade-off. Starting at $65,470 when the national median sits at $72,746 suggests either regional wage differences or that CCSU grads aren't landing the same roles as peers from other programs. The moderate sample size (30-100 graduates) makes these numbers reasonably reliable, but you're essentially betting on a local pipeline rather than a nationally competitive credential.

For Connecticut residents paying in-state tuition, the low debt makes this survivable even with below-average starting pay. Out-of-state students should think twice—you'd be paying premium tuition for wages that lag behind what construction management grads earn elsewhere, with no in-state competitors to explain away the gap as a regional norm.