Sociology at University of North Georgia

At first glance, a $30,576 starting salary against $25,000 in debt seems manageable—that's actually a reasonable debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.82. But context matters here: University of North Georgia's sociology program trails both the national median ($34,102) and sits just below Georgia's median for the field. More concerning, it lags significantly behind peer institutions across the state. Kennesaw State's sociology graduates earn nearly $6,000 more annually, and even Georgia Southern and Columbus State graduates command $4,000+ higher starting salaries. For a state university charging similar tuition, that gap is hard to justify.

The program does carry one of the lower debt loads among Georgia sociology programs ($25,000 versus the state median of $28,875), which helps offset the earnings disadvantage somewhat. Still, this isn't a program where graduates see strong early-career momentum. Being in the 23rd percentile nationally means three-quarters of sociology programs nationwide produce better earning outcomes.

For families considering this program, the question isn't whether sociology is a worthwhile field—it's whether this particular program represents the best investment within Georgia's public university system. Unless your child has specific reasons to attend UNG (military affiliation, campus preference, specialized faculty), other Georgia options deliver measurably better returns without substantially more debt. That $4,000-6,000 annual earnings difference compounds significantly over a career.