Economics at Stonehill College

Stonehill's Economics program sits in an awkward middle ground within Massachusetts: its $53,303 starting salary beats the national median by about $1,500, but falls $4,000 short of the typical MA economics graduate. Among Bay State schools, this ranks in just the 40th percentile—meaning six out of ten comparable programs in the state deliver better initial outcomes. Given that many students choose Stonehill specifically because it's local, that underperformance relative to state peers deserves attention.

The debt picture offers more reassurance. At $25,000, borrowing here matches both state and national medians, while the 0.47 debt-to-earnings ratio means graduates owe less than half their first-year salary. Earnings also show healthy growth, jumping 37% to $73,019 by year four. Still, even with that trajectory, graduates remain well behind the state's top performers—Harvard and the elite liberal arts colleges command starting salaries nearly double Stonehill's.

The major caveat: this data reflects fewer than 30 graduates, so a few outliers could skew the picture considerably. For families prioritizing Massachusetts proximity and manageable debt, Stonehill represents a safe but unspectacular choice. If your child can access one of the state's stronger programs—or if prestige matters for their career plans—the earnings gap suggests looking elsewhere may be worth the effort.