Communication and Media Studies at Florida State College at Jacksonville

Florida State College at Jacksonville's Communication and Media Studies program produces first-year earnings of $43,508—a figure that outperforms 94% of comparable programs nationally and 80% within Florida. That's roughly $9,000 above both the national and state medians for this degree, placing graduates in the same earnings tier as larger universities like the University of Central Florida and University of North Florida. The program trails only DeVry's unusually high outcomes among Florida's communication programs.

The estimated debt load of $19,500, based on other bachelor's programs at the institution, sits comfortably below both the state median ($21,677) and national median ($25,000) for communication degrees. With a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.45, graduates would need less than half their first-year salary to cover their total borrowing—a manageable burden that many programs in this field don't achieve. The college's 33% Pell population suggests it serves economically diverse students while still delivering competitive outcomes.

The caveat: these debt figures are estimates since the graduate sample was too small for the Department of Education to publish actual numbers. If you're seriously considering this program, ask the financial aid office for borrowing patterns among recent communication graduates. But the earnings advantage here is real and substantial—this program delivers better-than-expected results for a field that often struggles with early-career pay.