Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities at Tennessee Technological University

Tennessee Tech's liberal arts program graduates earn less than both state and national benchmarks, landing in just the 40th percentile among Tennessee schools and 35th nationally. At $33,678 in the first year, graduates trail the Tennessee median by nearly $4,000 and fall roughly $3,000 below the national median. Top Tennessee programs like Lee University and Middle Tennessee State show graduates earning 35% more right out of the gate, which translates to meaningful differences in monthly take-home pay.

The silver lining here is manageable debt—$21,000 is notably lower than both state and national medians, creating a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.62 that most borrowers can handle. Strong earnings growth of 20% by year four brings graduates closer to competitive territory at $40,320, though this still lags behind stronger programs in Tennessee. The robust sample size confirms these aren't outlier results.

For families weighing this option: if your child is set on Tennessee Tech for campus culture or cost reasons, understand they're accepting below-average earnings outcomes in exchange for lower debt. If career earnings matter most, other Tennessee public universities deliver better returns in this field. The math works if your child keeps debt at or below the program average, but this isn't where you'd send a student specifically for liberal arts preparation.