Non-Professional General Legal Studies (Undergraduate) at Liberty University

A $27,637 starting salary paired with $26,656 in debt tells you what you need to know about Liberty's legal studies program: you're graduating nearly dollar-for-dollar in debt to earnings, facing immediate financial pressure that $39,000+ earners at typical programs don't. That bottom-5th-percentile national ranking is stark—194 schools offer this degree, and Liberty's graduates earn less than 95% of them. For context, the national median for this program is $39,162, meaning Liberty graduates start $11,500 behind their peers elsewhere.

The small sample size (under 30 graduates) is worth noting, but it doesn't explain away a 30% earnings gap. The 60th percentile Virginia ranking is misleading—Liberty is literally the only school in the state offering this undergraduate legal studies program, so there's no meaningful state comparison. Nearly 40% of Liberty students receive Pell grants, and for those families especially, starting at under $28,000 annually makes loan repayment genuinely difficult.

If your child is set on legal studies, look hard at programs where graduates actually earn closer to $40,000+. At Liberty's price point, you're paying bachelor's degree costs for near-poverty wages. Unless there are compelling personal reasons to attend (religious mission fit, established relationships), this program doesn't justify the investment when dozens of alternatives exist with 40-50% higher starting salaries and similar debt loads.