Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities at Georgia Southern University

Georgia Southern's Liberal Arts program carries a significant debt burden, but there's a crucial bright spot: graduates here take on substantially less debt than their peers across Georgia—$31,000 versus the state median of nearly $40,000. That $8,700 difference matters enormously when you're earning in the mid-$30,000s right after graduation. While first-year earnings trail the national average by about $2,000, this program actually performs better than 60% of similar programs in Georgia, landing right at the state median.

The debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.90 means graduates face less than a year's salary in debt, which is manageable territory for a liberal arts degree. Earnings grow 17% by year four, reaching over $40,000—solid progression that suggests graduates are finding their footing in the job market. With 100+ graduates in the data, these aren't statistical flukes.

For Georgia families, particularly those staying in-state, this represents a cost-effective path to a bachelor's degree. You're not getting premium outcomes—this isn't University of North Georgia's $38,000 starting salary—but you're also not gambling with outsized debt. If your child needs a broad-based degree and plans to work in Georgia, the relatively modest debt load makes this a reasonable choice.