Computer and Information Sciences at Marquette University

Marquette's computer science graduates earn solidly above the national median ($70,530 versus $61,322), placing them in the 73rd percentile nationally. However, within Wisconsin's competitive tech education landscape, the picture is less impressive—the program lands at the 60th percentile statewide, trailing flagship UW-Madison by about $10,000 and even smaller schools like Lakeland and UW-Eau Claire. With debt of $22,536—below both state and national medians—graduates face a manageable 0.32 debt-to-earnings ratio and see healthy 18% earnings growth by year four.

The value proposition here comes down to fit rather than financial optimization. If your child has strong reasons to attend Marquette (Jesuit education, urban Milwaukee location, smaller class sizes than the flagship), the debt burden won't derail their career trajectory. First-year earnings of $70,530 provide plenty of room to handle loan payments while building financial stability. But if the decision is purely about maximizing tech career outcomes in Wisconsin, several public universities deliver comparable or better results at lower cost. UW-Madison's substantially higher earnings justify serious consideration for students who can gain admission, while schools like UW-Eau Claire offer similar outcomes to Marquette with typically lower tuition.

The moderate sample size suggests these figures are reasonably reliable but worth confirming against recent job placement data from the university itself.