Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities at Great Bay Community College

Great Bay's Liberal Arts associate degree punches well above its weight nationally—graduates earn $35,497 in their first year, placing this program in the 95th percentile compared to similar programs nationwide. That's $8,000 more than the typical Liberal Arts associate degree earns, which is genuinely impressive for a general studies program. The $12,500 debt load is reasonable, creating a manageable 0.35 debt-to-earnings ratio that most graduates can handle.

However, context matters: within New Hampshire, this program sits at the 60th percentile, and there's good reason for that. The state's top performer (Southern New Hampshire University at $43,806) earns significantly more, though that comes with bachelor's degree expectations. More concerning is that earnings data comes from fewer than 30 graduates, making these numbers less reliable than they appear. A few high earners could skew the picture dramatically.

For parents comfortable with uncertainty and looking at this as a stepping stone to a four-year degree, the combination of low debt and decent earning potential makes sense. But if your student plans to stop at the associate level, understand you're making a bet on limited data. The 16% earnings growth to year four ($41,191) suggests graduates do gain traction over time, but whether that pattern holds with larger cohorts remains an open question.