Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences at Stephens College

Based on comparable programs in Missouri, this bachelor's degree appears positioned right at the state median—with estimated first-year earnings around $36,400 and debt near $26,250. That debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.72 sits in workable territory, suggesting graduates could theoretically pay off loans within a year if they lived extremely frugally, though realistically it means manageable monthly payments on an entry-level healthcare salary. What's worth noting is the gap: Missouri's stronger health sciences programs at public universities are producing graduates who earn $7,000-8,000 more annually right out of the gate, which compounds significantly over a career.

The challenge with Stephens' program is that we're looking entirely at estimates—no actual graduate outcomes are available because too few students have completed this degree to publish reliable data. That makes it impossible to know whether Stephens' career services, clinical placement network, or employer relationships match those of the state's established programs. For a field where certification, clinical hours, and employer connections matter enormously, graduating from a program with a thin track record introduces risk that doesn't show up in median state figures.

If your child has specific reasons to choose Stephens—location, smaller class sizes, a particular program focus—understand you're accepting uncertainty about outcomes in exchange for those benefits. Otherwise, the public universities with proven health sciences programs offer clearer paths to the same credentials at comparable or lower cost.