Human Services at Shorter University

The numbers here tell a difficult story, though the small sample size means individual outcomes could vary significantly. Shorter's Human Services graduates carry $46,320 in debt—nearly 50% more than both the national and Georgia medians—while earning just $30,167 in their first year. That debt burden is 1.5 times first-year earnings, creating a challenging financial start that typically signals trouble with loan repayment.

Within Georgia, this program sits near the middle of the pack for earnings (40th percentile), but that context doesn't resolve the fundamental problem: the debt level is simply too high relative to what graduates earn. Even after four years, when earnings reach $33,307, graduates are still carrying an oversized debt burden. Compare this to Gordon State College, where Human Services graduates earn similar amounts but presumably exit with debt closer to the state median of $31,000—that $15,000 difference in borrowing matters enormously when you're earning in the low $30,000s.

For a family considering this path, the math is stark. Unless your child can significantly reduce borrowing through scholarships or family contributions, this program's financial structure creates unnecessary hardship in a field that's already modestly compensated. Georgia offers better debt-to-earnings combinations for Human Services degrees, and those alternatives deserve serious consideration before committing to this level of borrowing.