Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics at Illinois State University

Illinois State's Romance Languages program posts numbers that dramatically outperform both state and national benchmarks—graduates earn $49,448 in their first year, ranking in the 95th percentile nationally and 80th percentile in Illinois. That's 43% above the national median for this major and $9,000 more than even Northern Illinois University, the next-best program in the state. The debt load of $22,375 is entirely manageable at 0.45 times first-year earnings, meaning most graduates could realistically pay it off within a few years.

The catch? Earnings actually decline to $46,915 by year four, and these numbers come from a very small sample of graduates (under 30). That sample size matters because one or two exceptional career outcomes—say, graduates who landed competitive consulting or tech jobs—could skew the entire picture. The broader reality is that Romance Languages degrees don't typically command these salaries, and the earnings decline suggests these early results may not be sustainable.

If your child is passionate about language study and Illinois State is on the table, these numbers suggest reasonable financial risk. Just understand you're betting on a small dataset that may not reflect the typical outcome. The low debt is the real safety net here—even if earnings regress toward more typical Romance Languages numbers in the $35,000 range, the manageable borrowing keeps this from becoming a financial trap.