Bachelor's · Muncie, Indiana

Is City/Urban, Community, and Regional Planning at Ball State University 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 4.2 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: Not enough graduates to report; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $59,789; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: Not enough borrowers to report; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $59k (likely $59k – $74k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $21k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in IN; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 4.2 years (likely 2.4–8.4); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: −$29k (likely −$149k – $134k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $220k (likely −$28k – $549k); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 62%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26

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🏗️ Getting ready in high school

Students heading toward engineering & architecture majors like this one often take these classes. Every school offers a different mix, so check with your counselor.

AP classes

AP Calculus AB or BC
AP Physics 1
AP Physics C: Mechanics
AP Chemistry

IB Higher Level

Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches HL
Physics HL

Build my roadmap 🗺️ Middle school to career, plus high schools near you that offer these classes.