Mathematics at Marquette University

Marquette's math program starts graduates at $47,141—below both Wisconsin's median ($50,285) and the national average—but shows impressive 42% earnings growth by year four, reaching $66,922. That's a significant trajectory that eventually surpasses UW-Milwaukee's outcomes and narrows the gap with UW-Madison's $67,744. The $20,500 debt load is reasonable and slightly better than state and national medians, translating to a manageable 0.43 debt-to-earnings ratio.

The caveat here matters: with fewer than 30 graduates in the dataset, these numbers could shift considerably with a larger sample. The wide range in Wisconsin outcomes—from sub-$50k to nearly $68k at Madison—suggests that individual career paths vary significantly for math majors. Marquette's 40th percentile ranking in Wisconsin reflects that modest starting salary, but the strong earnings growth indicates graduates are finding their footing relatively quickly.

For families weighing an 87% admission rate school against Wisconsin's flagship, this comes down to fit and cost. If Marquette's net price approaches UW-Madison's after aid, the flagship delivers better starting outcomes. But the debt is manageable, the earnings trajectory is encouraging, and graduates clearly aren't stuck at that initial salary. Just remember these figures represent a small group and may not predict your child's individual outcome as reliably as data from larger programs would.