Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations at Washburn University

A debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.52 suggests manageable repayment—about half the first-year salary in loans—but this assessment comes with substantial uncertainty since both the $45,265 earnings figure and $23,350 debt load are estimates drawn from peer institutions nationally. With only Kansas State reporting actual outcomes in the state ($39,646), there's limited visibility into how Washburn's entrepreneurship graduates specifically fare in the Kansas market. The estimated earnings match the national median, which is reasonable but not remarkable for a bachelor's degree program, and entrepreneurship outcomes can vary dramatically based on whether graduates launch their own ventures or take traditional employment.

The estimated debt falls slightly below the national median for these programs, which matters for the 31% of students receiving Pell grants—they're often balancing immediate earning needs against loan payments. Entrepreneurship programs notoriously produce wide outcome distributions: some graduates build successful businesses while others struggle in their early years, meaning these median estimates may not capture the real risk-reward profile of this path.

For families considering Washburn's program, recognize you're operating with limited visibility. The estimates suggest typical outcomes for entrepreneurship bachelor's programs nationally, but without actual data, you can't know if Washburn's specific curriculum, faculty connections, or regional business ecosystem produces better or worse results than these benchmarks suggest. If your student is seriously considering this path, direct conversations with recent alumni about their actual career trajectories would fill critical gaps these estimates can't address.