Finance and Financial Management Services at Southern Adventist University

Based on comparable finance programs in Tennessee, this degree comes with estimated first-year earnings of $45,325 and debt around $25,812—creating a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.57 that falls within manageable territory. However, that earnings figure sits at the Tennessee median while the debt estimate exceeds it, derived from a national average that includes many private institutions. The question for families is whether Southern Adventist's specific value proposition—likely including smaller class sizes and a faith-based environment—justifies potentially higher borrowing than what students at larger public universities in the state typically carry.

The earnings gap matters here. Top finance programs in Tennessee like UT-Knoxville report graduates earning $53,826 in their first year, nearly $8,500 more than what similar programs across the state typically produce. That's real money when you're making loan payments. Even Middle Tennessee State and UT-Martin show outcomes at or slightly above this estimate. Without actual graduate data for Southern Adventist specifically, families can't know whether this program punches above or below the state average.

The practical reality: if the actual debt lands near $26,000 and earnings track with the state median, monthly loan payments would consume roughly 7% of gross income—tight but workable for most graduates. The risk lies in uncertainty. Before committing, push the financial aid office for concrete numbers on what recent finance graduates actually borrowed and whether the school tracks their early career outcomes, even if they can't publicly report them.