Chemistry at Wisconsin Lutheran College

Wisconsin peers with reported outcomes suggest bachelor's chemistry graduates earn around $49,000 in their first year—slightly above the national median of $42,600—while carrying roughly $25,000 in debt. If Wisconsin Lutheran College's program tracks with these state averages, graduates would face a debt-to-earnings ratio of about 0.51, meaning they'd owe roughly half their first-year salary. That's a manageable starting point, though not exceptional.

What's worth noting is how tightly clustered Wisconsin's chemistry programs are in both earnings and debt. The five comparable schools with reported data all fall within a narrow $5,500 earnings range, suggesting the state's job market for chemistry graduates doesn't vary dramatically by institution. Wisconsin Lutheran's smaller size and higher admission selectivity (SAT of 1214 versus open-enrollment publics) might offer advantages in mentorship or research opportunities, but those don't appear to translate into measurably higher early earnings based on peer program patterns.

The practical concern is that you're making financial projections based on how other Wisconsin chemistry programs perform, not this specific cohort. If your student is considering graduate school—common in chemistry—the debt load remains reasonable. For immediate employment in labs or quality control, the estimated numbers suggest financial stability within the first few years, assuming actual outcomes align with state peers.