Psychology at Davis & Elkins College

Based on comparable psychology bachelor's programs nationally, first-year earnings around $36,890 paired with $26,000 in estimated debt creates a workable but hardly generous financial picture. That debt level sits well above the national median of $16,472 for psychology graduates, meaning your child would be starting their career with roughly $10,000 more in loans than peers at many other schools—a difference that translates to about $100 extra per month in payments over a standard repayment period.

The 0.70 debt-to-earnings ratio falls within manageable territory, but there's little room for error here. Psychology bachelor's degrees typically require graduate school for clinical work, so that $26,000 represents just the first layer of educational debt for students pursuing licensure. For those entering the workforce immediately—in roles like case management, social services, or human resources—the estimated $36,890 starting salary means those loan payments will consume a meaningful chunk of monthly income during the crucial early career years.

Given that Davis & Elkins serves a substantial population of Pell-eligible students (40%), the above-average debt burden deserves scrutiny. Without actual outcomes data for this specific program, you're evaluating based on what similar schools produce. If your child is set on psychology and planning for graduate school anyway, minimizing undergraduate debt should be the priority—which may mean comparing this estimated cost against programs with lower reported debt figures elsewhere.