Bachelor's · Richmond, Kentucky

Is Music at Eastern Kentucky 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 slowly: graduates typically recover the cost in about 17.6 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $38,142; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $40,465; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $23,000; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $51k (likely $51k – $63k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $3k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in KY; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 17.6 years (likely 6.0–20+); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: −$180k (likely −$262k – −$96k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: −$139k (likely −$286k – $30k); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 51%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26