Business/Managerial Economics at University of Massachusetts-Amherst

At a flagship state university, you'd expect stronger returns than this. UMass Amherst's business economics graduates start at $46,170—roughly $11,000 below the Massachusetts median for this program and $7,000 under the national average. Among the four Massachusetts schools offering this degree, this program ranks in the bottom quartile. Bentley University graduates, for comparison, earn $68,627 in their first year, nearly 50% more.

The debt picture is better: at $27,000, it matches the state median and sits well below the national average, keeping the debt-to-earnings ratio reasonable at 0.58. That suggests graduates can manage their loans, even if starting salaries disappoint. The low admission standards for a flagship campus (58% acceptance rate) may signal that this program isn't drawing top students who might command higher salaries.

The critical caveat: this data comes from fewer than 30 graduates, making any conclusions tentative. Still, the consistent underperformance—bottom quartile both nationally and statewide—is hard to dismiss. If your child is serious about business economics and can access one of the state's higher-performing programs, that's worth exploring. Otherwise, UMass might serve better as a value option than a career accelerator in this particular field.