Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication at Lake Erie College

Communications programs across Ohio show dramatic variation in outcomes, with top-performing institutions like Miami University producing graduates who earn $50,700 in their first year—roughly $9,000 more than the state median this Lake Erie program appears likely to match. Based on comparable programs in Ohio, students here would face estimated debt of around $26,800 and first-year earnings near $41,700, creating a manageable debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.64 that sits comfortably below the concerning threshold of 1.0.

The challenge is that we're working entirely with estimates here—Lake Erie's graduate pool in this major is too small for the Department of Education to publish actual outcomes. The projected earnings do exceed the national median for communications programs by about $1,900, which provides some reassurance. However, the $9,000 gap between Lake Erie's likely outcomes and Ohio's top performers is substantial enough to warrant exploring whether those higher-performing programs are accessible options, especially since the debt loads appear similar.

For families who've already decided on Lake Erie for campus fit or other reasons, these estimated numbers don't flash warning signs—the debt burden appears reasonable relative to likely earnings. But the wide performance gap among Ohio communications programs means there's real value in comparing specific outcomes data from alternative schools if your student has multiple acceptances in hand.