Linguistic, Comparative, at Stephen F Austin State University

Stephen F. Austin State's linguistics program posts impressive first-year earnings of $38,375—nearly $7,000 above Texas's median and $11,000 above the national benchmark. With a debt load of $19,495 and a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.51, graduates can expect to repay loans equivalent to about half their first year's salary, which is manageable territory. This puts the program ahead of even UT Austin's well-regarded linguistics offerings in terms of initial earnings outcomes.

The caveat here matters: with fewer than 30 graduates in this dataset, a handful of standout career placements could be skewing these numbers upward. Linguistics programs can vary wildly in outcomes depending on whether graduates land in teaching, translation, tech, or graduate school paths. The 60th percentile ranking among Texas programs (versus the 95th nationally) suggests that while this looks strong compared to the typical linguistics program nationwide, it's more middle-of-the-pack within Texas's competitive landscape.

For families willing to bet on a smaller program at a regional university with high acceptance rates, the numbers suggest reasonable value—assuming your student has a clear plan for applying these skills. The modest debt combined with above-average earnings creates breathing room for career exploration, but the small sample means you're taking on more uncertainty than you would with a larger, more established program.