Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas at Linfield University

Linfield's teaching program lands squarely in the middle: estimated first-year earnings of $43,082 match the national median exactly, while the $27,000 debt figure sits at the 25th percentile—meaning three-quarters of teacher education programs nationwide leave graduates with more debt. That's genuinely favorable for a program at a private university where tuition tends to run higher.

The 0.63 debt-to-earnings ratio tells the practical story here. Graduates comparable to those from this program could expect their debt to equal about 7.5 months of their first year's salary—manageable in education, where salaries typically grow steadily if modestly over time. Oregon's teacher salary schedules and benefits packages provide some stability that raw earnings figures don't capture, though parents should verify specific district compensation in areas where their child might teach.

The caveat matters: these figures come from similar programs nationally since Linfield's cohort was too small to report separately. That means actual outcomes could vary, particularly since Oregon has only seven such programs total. For a parent, this suggests looking at Linfield's specific teacher placement rates and which districts hire their graduates—information the school should readily provide. The debt number is right, though, and that's the figure you're committing to.