Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions at Concordia University-Saint Paul

Rehabilitation and therapeutic professions programs nationally produce first-year earnings around $36,000, and Concordia-Saint Paul's program appears to track close to that benchmark. With estimated debt of $27,000—just slightly above the national median for these programs—graduates would face monthly loan payments of roughly $300 on a standard repayment plan. That's manageable on a $36,000 salary, though it leaves limited room for unexpected expenses or the kind of urban living costs common in the Twin Cities metro area.

The challenge here isn't the debt load itself but the earnings trajectory in this field. Rehabilitation professions often require additional certifications or graduate credentials to reach higher salary bands, meaning the bachelor's degree may function more as an entry point than a destination. If your child plans to work immediately after graduation, the 0.75 debt-to-earnings ratio suggests reasonable financial footing. But if they'll need a master's degree to advance—common in fields like occupational or physical therapy—that $27,000 represents just the first layer of educational debt.

Given the limited program-specific data available, the safest approach is to verify what percentage of graduates from this particular program move directly into employment versus continuing their education. That split will tell you whether this bachelor's degree serves as a launchpad or a credential that genuinely prepares students for sustainable work in rehabilitation services.