Natural Resources Conservation and Research at Tufts University

Tufts' Natural Resources Conservation program carries significant uncertainty given its small graduating class (under 30 students), but the available data reveals a complicated value equation. While graduates earn about $6,000 more than the national median and carry roughly $5,000 less debt than typical programs, that $40,044 starting salary feels thin for a school with Tufts' selectivity and price tag. Within Massachusetts, this ranks middle-of-the-pack—well behind what conservation graduates earn at UMass-Lowell ($45,215) and nowhere near the premium commanded by Northeastern's program.

The debt picture looks manageable at first glance, with a 0.45 debt-to-earnings ratio suggesting graduates owe less than half their first-year salary. However, this likely reflects strong financial aid rather than genuinely affordable tuition. For families not qualifying for substantial aid, the full cost of attending Tufts could dramatically change this calculation. Conservation and environmental fields are notoriously modest-paying early on, and $40,000 doesn't leave much cushion for loan payments if your student borrows heavily.

If your child is passionate about conservation work and receives generous aid, this could work—Tufts offers excellent networking and graduate school preparation. But if you're paying near sticker price, understand you're primarily investing in the institution's prestige and connections, not salary momentum in this particular field. Those connections may matter enormously for competitive environmental jobs or graduate programs, but the payoff won't show up in year-one earnings.