History at Radford University

Radford's history program shows a troubling first-year earnings picture—$28,239 lands in just the 28th percentile nationally and 40th in Virginia, where the state median is $32,368. The $20,500 debt load isn't massive, but paired with those initial wages, your child would be earning less than many graduates from state schools like Longwood ($37,404) or Old Dominion ($36,733) who attended programs with similar tuition structures.

The one promising signal is the 75% earnings jump by year four, reaching $49,327. If that trajectory holds, this becomes a very different story—those fourth-year earnings would actually exceed what most history graduates earn early in their careers. But here's the critical caveat: this data comes from fewer than 30 graduates, making these numbers statistically shaky. One or two graduates landing in high-earning fields could dramatically skew the average, and you can't bank your child's future on that uncertainty.

The safer bet for a Virginia family considering history would be exploring programs at schools like Longwood or ODU, where larger sample sizes suggest more reliable outcomes and stronger early earnings. If Radford is still the choice for other reasons, go in expecting a difficult first year or two financially, and have a backup plan if those fourth-year earnings don't materialize.