Communication and Media Studies at The College of Wooster

Wooster's Communication and Media Studies grads start at nearly $40,000—about $4,000 above the national median and $3,700 above what typical Ohio programs deliver. That puts graduates solidly in the upper half of both benchmarks, though notably behind Ohio's top performers like Denison ($47,400) and Dayton ($42,600). Still, for a selective liberal arts college, Wooster manages to place students competitively in what's traditionally a challenging field for first-year earnings.

The debt picture looks reasonable at $22,681, coming in below both state and national medians for this major. With a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.57, graduates face manageable repayment: standard loans would claim roughly 6-7% of gross income. That's a workable starting point, though families should recognize that media careers often require building experience before hitting higher salaries.

The caveat here matters: we're looking at fewer than 30 graduates, so individual outcomes could shift these numbers significantly. One unusually high or low earner has outsized impact. For families comfortable with Wooster's liberal arts environment and price tag, these numbers suggest graduates land decent entry-level positions. Just understand you're paying for the broader Wooster experience—the major itself doesn't command premium starting salaries the way technical fields do.