Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas at Saint Mary's University of Minnesota

Based on comparable teacher education programs in Minnesota, Saint Mary's suggests a starting salary around $44,360 with estimated debt of $27,000—numbers that align closely with both state and national benchmarks for this credential. The debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.61 falls within reasonable territory for education majors, though it's worth noting that several Minnesota programs with reported outcomes show graduates earning $46,000-$48,000 in their first year.

The challenge with teaching credentials is rarely the debt load itself but rather the constrained salary trajectory. While $27,000 in loans is manageable on a $44,000 starting salary, teachers don't typically see the income growth that helps graduates of other programs quickly outpace their debt. The real question becomes whether your child is drawn to teaching for reasons beyond compensation, since the financial equation rarely tips dramatically in either direction.

Without program-specific outcomes from Saint Mary's, you're essentially betting on the Minnesota median. That's neither alarming nor particularly advantageous—it simply means this program appears to perform like most others in the state. If teaching is the goal, the program seems financially viable, but don't expect it to stand out from the pack based on the limited data available.