English Language and Literature at Kent State University at Tuscarawas

Kent State Tuscarawas English graduates face a brutal first year—$22,318 puts them in just the 5th percentile nationally for English majors—but the trajectory tells a more interesting story. By year four, earnings jump 56% to nearly $35,000, which actually exceeds the national median for the field. That's unusual growth for an English degree, though the starting point makes it necessary rather than impressive.

The $26,000 debt load equals Ohio's median for English programs, which sounds manageable until you factor in that rock-bottom first-year salary. New graduates will be scraping by while those loans enter repayment. This program ranks bottom-quartile among Ohio's 71 English programs (25th percentile), trailing stronger in-state options like Wright State ($33,011 even in year one) by significant margins. The regional campus location and student population (31% Pell recipients) likely explain some of the initial employment challenges.

The reality: if your child can weather an extremely tight first couple of years after graduation, the earnings picture improves to respectability. But there are notably better English programs within Ohio that don't require that painful adjustment period. Unless strong personal reasons justify choosing this specific campus, the data suggests looking at those alternatives first.