Political Science and Government at Mercyhurst University

Mercyhurst's political science program shows graduates earning less than both the Pennsylvania state median ($37,534) and the national average ($35,627), placing it in the 40th percentile among Pennsylvania schools. With a small sample size, these numbers warrant careful interpretation, but the pattern suggests this program trails most comparable options in the state by a meaningful margin—roughly $3,000 below the typical Pennsylvania political science graduate's first-year earnings.

The $25,000 median debt falls right in line with state norms, creating a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.72. That's manageable in absolute terms—graduates could theoretically pay off their loans within a couple years of aggressive saving—but the real challenge is the starting salary itself. At $34,711, graduates face a tight financial runway in their first year, particularly if they're relocating to a higher-cost metro area for work. The program doesn't appear to be extracting premium costs, but it's also not delivering premium outcomes compared to peer schools.

For families comparing options within Pennsylvania, this program sits firmly in the middle-to-lower tier. If your student has access to stronger programs in the state (even public universities often outperform this benchmark), those would likely offer better career positioning. The small sample does leave open the possibility of year-to-year variance, but given the competitive landscape for liberal arts graduates, you'd want to see clear differentiators—specialized tracks, strong internship pipelines, or robust alumni networks—before committing here over higher-performing alternatives.