Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies at Saint Michael's College

Saint Michael's College charges students roughly $26,000 in debt for a bachelor's in Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies—a credential that, based on national patterns for this major, typically leads to first-year earnings around $39,000. That 0.67 debt-to-earnings ratio isn't catastrophic, but it means graduates will likely face monthly loan payments equivalent to about 7% of their gross income, which becomes significant when you're earning under $40,000 to start.

What makes this harder to evaluate is that both the earnings and debt figures are estimates drawn from peer institutions nationally, since Saint Michael's graduate sample was too small for the Department of Education to report publicly. The actual Vermont benchmark for this major sits at about $36,000—roughly $3,000 less than the national median we're using here. If Saint Michael's outcomes track closer to other Vermont schools than to the national average, the debt burden becomes tighter still.

The broader concern is what interdisciplinary studies degrees deliver in the job market. These programs can be intellectually rewarding but often lack the clear career pathway of more specialized majors, which means that $26,000 in debt carries more risk when your earning potential depends heavily on what you do with the degree after graduation. Parents should understand they're looking at estimates rather than proven outcomes for this specific program, and that the major itself requires students to be particularly strategic about internships and career planning to justify the investment.