Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods at College of Saint Mary

Based on comparable teaching programs in Nebraska, College of Saint Mary's education graduates can expect first-year earnings around $41,300—right in line with the state median for this field. That places the program competitively with University of Nebraska at Omaha and Wayne State College, though slightly behind the state's top performers like Nebraska Wesleyan and UNL. The estimated debt load of $27,000 yields a manageable 0.65 debt-to-earnings ratio, meaning graduates would owe roughly eight months of their first-year salary.

What's puzzling here is the four-year earnings figure of $38,722, which actually dips below the first-year estimate. This could reflect measurement quirks or differences in which graduates were tracked, but it suggests earnings growth may be slower or less predictable than in other fields. Teaching salaries in Nebraska do tend to start relatively flat and grow with years of service and additional credentials.

The practical reality: peer programs suggest this degree leads to stable, if modest, teaching incomes with debt that shouldn't be crushing. However, with limited actual data from this specific program, you're making an educated guess based on how similar Nebraska education programs perform. If your child is committed to teaching in Nebraska, these numbers suggest a viable path—just understand the estimates are your best available proxy, not a guarantee of what this particular program delivers.