Political Science and Government at Truman State University

Truman State's political science graduates earn nearly $40,000 in their first year—outperforming both the national median ($35,627) and Missouri's typical program ($36,886). That's solid, but the small sample size here (under 30 graduates) means one exceptional grad year could skew these numbers significantly. The program ranks 60th percentile within Missouri, trailing flagships like Mizzou and Missouri State by a couple thousand dollars.

The real strength is affordability. At $26,649 in median debt—barely above the national and state medians—graduates face a manageable 0.67 debt-to-earnings ratio. That's well below the concerning 1.0 threshold where debt equals a full year's salary. For a liberal arts program that doesn't lead directly to high-paying careers, this matters more than the raw earnings figure.

The catch is predictability. With Truman's 80% admission rate and strong academic profile (1249 average SAT), you'd expect more consistent outcomes. The small cohort makes it hard to know if next year's graduates will see similar results. If your child is genuinely passionate about political science and drawn to Truman's public liberal arts mission, the debt load won't be crushing. But if they're uncertain about the major or eyeing graduate school, the flagship universities offer comparable or slightly better earnings with similar debt—and larger alumni networks.