Economics at Knox College

That first-year salary of $23,222 looks alarming, and it is—Knox's economics graduates earn less initially than typical retail managers. However, this program's story is really about an unusually steep earnings trajectory. The 154% jump to nearly $60,000 by year four suggests many graduates take gap-year positions, unpaid internships, or graduate school immediately after Knox, then launch into professional careers. The small sample size (under 30 graduates) makes this pattern less reliable than data from larger programs, but the four-year number at least approaches respectability.

Still, context matters: $59,038 trails the national economics median by $7,000 and ranks in just the 10th percentile among Illinois programs. When University of Chicago economics grads earn $92,000 and even mid-tier Illinois schools like Olivet Nazarene hit $54,000, Knox's outcomes look weak for a field that typically promises strong returns. The $25,000 debt load is manageable, but only because you're starting from such a low earnings base that the numbers seem proportional.

For a family paying private liberal arts tuition at Knox, this program delivers economics credentials without economics-level compensation. If your child is set on Knox for other reasons, they should plan for that rocky first year and understand they'll likely need graduate school or strategic internships to reach competitive earnings. Otherwise, Illinois offers better economics ROI elsewhere.