Bachelor's · Rexburg, Idaho

Is Political Science and Government at Brigham Young University-Idaho worth it?

Low confidence Low confidence: fewer than 40 graduates behind the earnings figures.

The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans

Pays back in time: graduates typically recover the cost in about 3.5 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $43,524; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $60,843; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $21,576; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $31k (likely $28k – $39k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $22k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in ID; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 3.5 years (likely 2.4–5.2); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: −$22k (likely −$115k – $80k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $246k (likely $56k – $467k); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 52%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26