Business Administration, Management and Operations at Rhodes College

Rhodes College graduates enter the business world earning $58,550—putting them ahead of 94% of business programs nationally and 80% in Tennessee. That's $15,600 more than the typical Tennessee business graduate and nearly $13,000 above the national median. With just $22,240 in debt (below both state and national averages), graduates carry one of the lighter debt loads among Tennessee's top-performing programs. The debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.38 means students can pay off their loans in well under a year if they're aggressive about it.

The trajectory looks equally solid. Four years out, median earnings climb to $72,782—a healthy 24% increase that suggests these graduates are advancing into management roles rather than stagnating. Rhodes trails only UT-Knoxville among Tennessee business programs, matching or beating schools like Tennessee Wesleyan and Union University. This performance is particularly notable given Rhodes' liberal arts focus, which sometimes disadvantages business students compared to programs at universities with stronger corporate recruiting pipelines.

The real story here is value: Rhodes delivers elite business outcomes (top 6% nationally) with below-average debt. For families willing to invest in a selective liberal arts education—the school's 1385 average SAT suggests strong peer networks—this program punches well above its modest 15% Pell Grant rate would suggest. You're essentially getting Tennessee's second-best business program outcomes at a manageable debt level.