Bachelor's · Florence, South Carolina

Is Communication and Media Studies at Francis Marion 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 4.3 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $50,128; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: Not enough graduates to report; 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: $46k (likely $46k – $64k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $15k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in SC; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 4.3 years (likely 2.5–11.1); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: −$63k (likely −$174k – $52k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $100k (likely −$111k – $343k); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 38%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26