History at Michigan State University

Michigan State's history program sits squarely in the middle—nationally it performs slightly above average, but within Michigan it lands below the state median. A graduate earning $32,434 after one year is making more than the typical history major nationwide, yet they're trailing their in-state peers at schools like Wayne State ($41,874) or even Saginaw Valley State ($38,628). For Michigan families comparing state universities, that gap matters: MSU's history graduates start nearly $10,000 behind Wayne State's, despite similar debt loads.

The program's strength lies in its manageable debt. At $27,000, graduates borrow exactly the Michigan median for history programs, and the 0.83 debt-to-earnings ratio means the first year's salary covers most of what they owe. Earnings growth of 19% over four years shows decent momentum, reaching $38,703—though that's still $3,000 below where Wayne State grads start. The moderate sample size suggests reasonably stable outcomes.

For families weighing MSU's history program, the tradeoff is clear: you're getting Big Ten name recognition and a reasonable debt burden, but not leading earnings among Michigan public universities. If your student is committed to history and values MSU's campus culture, the numbers work. If maximizing early earnings is the priority, Wayne State or Saginaw Valley deliver better returns for similar in-state tuition.