Mathematics at Flagler College

A debt load of roughly $22,000 for a bachelor's in mathematics seems reasonable on its face—that's about the national median for this field. But when you look at what similar Florida math programs produce in terms of first-year earnings, the picture becomes less straightforward. At an estimated $46,000, graduates would carry a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.47, which is manageable but not exceptional. This puts the program near the state median but several thousand dollars behind what larger Florida universities report for their math graduates.

The challenge here is that we're working entirely with estimates derived from comparable programs since Flagler's graduate cohort was too small for the Department of Education to publish actual outcomes. Other Florida math programs at schools like UCF and FSU show first-year earnings in the $49,000-$51,000 range, suggesting there may be advantages to the larger institutional networks and recruiting pipelines. Flagler's smaller scale and 78% admission rate position it differently in the market than these alternatives.

For a parent considering this investment, the estimated numbers don't wave any red flags, but they don't offer compelling advantages either. The real question is whether Flagler's intimate learning environment and location justify potentially trailing peer institutions by $3,000-$5,000 in starting salary. Without actual graduate outcomes data, you're essentially betting on the value of small classes and personal attention translating into comparable career placement—a reasonable bet for some students, but one that requires confidence in fit over measurable results.