Homeland Security at Pierce College District

A debt-to-earnings ratio under 0.5 suggests manageable borrowing, but the context here matters significantly. Drawing from national patterns across homeland security bachelor's programs, first-year earnings around $48,700 against $23,250 in debt would be workable—you're looking at roughly six months of gross income to cover the full debt load. However, Pierce College is the only school offering this bachelor's degree in Washington state, which limits your ability to comparison-shop or validate these estimates locally.

The national benchmark shows considerable earning variation in this field, with top programs reaching over $62,000 in first-year earnings. That 28% gap between median and top-performing programs matters when you're investing four years and substantial debt. Because both the earnings and debt figures here are estimated from peer programs nationally rather than Pierce's actual graduate outcomes, you're essentially betting that this program will perform like the typical homeland security degree elsewhere—without local data to confirm that assumption.

For an anxious parent, the question is whether you're comfortable with that uncertainty. The estimated numbers suggest reasonable financial viability, but you'd want to dig into what Pierce's specific program offers—internship connections, faculty experience in the field, job placement support—that might help ensure outcomes at or above the national median rather than below it.