MASTER'S DEGREE · NATIONAL DEGREE OUTCOMES

Is a master's degree in Educational/Instructional Media Design worth it?

Compare cost, debt and earnings across 83 college programs with reportable data.

Personal baseline needed

$71,246 in median year-4 earnings

A credible return for this credential must start with what the student would otherwise earn. The federal data does not provide that personal baseline.

$71,246Median year-4 earnings
$18,110Average institution net-price context
Not availableMedian federal debt
Use your actual price and alternative earnings before evaluating return. Model your own starting point →
Start with your decision

What do you need to compare?

WHAT THIS DEGREE PAYS

Outcomes at a glance

$71,246Typical earnings four years after completion
$70,303Average earnings five years after completion
Not availableTypical federal student debt
39thEarnings percentile among the same degree level
65Degrees awarded in 2024–25
83College programs reporting earnings

Degree counts come from the IPEDS Fall 2025 provisional release and cover 12 matched college records. Colleges without a match are not estimated.

A PRACTICAL READ

Four useful answers about Educational/Instructional Media Design

How much do Educational/Instructional Media Design master's degree graduates earn?

The national median is $71,246 four years after completion across reportable master's degree programs in this federal field.

How much federal debt do graduates have?

A national median federal-debt figure is not reportable for this degree in the current release.

Does the college matter for Educational/Instructional Media Design?

Yes. The middle half of reporting programs ranges from $64,619 to $78,680 in observed year-4 earnings.

What careers are related to Educational/Instructional Media Design?

DegreeVerdict links this field to 3 displayed occupations using the official federal CIP–SOC crosswalk. Occupational wages are career context, not graduate salary promises.

COMPARE DEGREE LEVELS

More schooling changes both the cost and the outcome.

Compare the same field at each degree level with reportable data. These are separate groups of graduates, so the differences do not prove that an additional degree caused higher earnings.

OPEN PROFILE

Associate's Degree

Year-4 earnings
$34,994
Federal debt
Not available
Programs in the comparison
1
1 report earnings →
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Bachelor's Degree

Year-4 earnings
$68,414
Federal debt
$37,758
Programs in the comparison
3
1 report earnings →
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Post-baccalaureate Certificate

Year-4 earnings
$59,669
Federal debt
$19,294
Programs in the comparison
1
1 report earnings →
CURRENT VIEW

Master's Degree

Year-4 earnings
$71,246
Federal debt
Not available
Programs in the comparison
83
83 report earnings →
OPEN PROFILE

Doctoral Degree

Year-4 earnings
$91,077
Federal debt
Not available
Programs in the comparison
4
4 report earnings →
OPEN PROFILE

Graduate/Professional Certificate

Year-4 earnings
$76,444
Federal debt
Not available
Programs in the comparison
4
4 report earnings →
COLLEGE-TO-COLLEGE RANGE

Where the middle half of programs lands

Year‑4 earnings differ by college. This band shows the 25th percentile, national median and 75th percentile among reporting programs.

Median
25th percentile$64,619National median$71,24675th percentile$78,680
83 programs report year‑4 earnings.
BEFORE YOU CHOOSE

Compare price, debt and earnings together

$78,68075th-percentile year-4 earnings among reporting programs
Not availableMedian federal debt across programs that report it
0Programs with earnings in the top quarter and debt at or below the median
SHORTLIST BY QUESTION

Three useful places to start

Each choice answers a different question. These are observed signals, not an overall winner.

Highest observed earnings

Harvard University

$127,546 four years after completionCambridge, MA · inspect the full program →
Largest recent graduating class

Grand Canyon University

154 reported awards in 2024–25Phoenix, AZ · inspect the full program →
PRICE × EARNINGS MAP

Where colleges sit for this exact degree

Move left for a lower annual college-wide net price and up for higher observed year-4 earnings.

$108,956Observed year-4 earnings$76,260
$7,770Annual college-wide average net price$36,708
All reporting colleges Lower-price, higher-earnings quadrantAxes trim the outer 5% for readability; outliers remain pinned to the chart edge. Price is institution-wide context, not exact program tuition.
Build your shortlist

Choose colleges offering this exact degree

Start with the highest-earning reported programs below, or open the full directory to search every college.

30 shortlist matchesSelect up to four · 25 shown
Search every reporting program →
WHERE OUTCOMES ARE STRONGEST

See the spread, not just the national number.

1Harvard University$127,5462New York University$117,8433University of Massachusetts-Boston$108,9564California State University, Monterey Bay$104,2205Concordia University-Irvine$102,8966Touro University$94,7437Quinnipiac University$93,6398National University$93,5479California State University, Fullerton$91,75510Long Island University$91,452

Observed year-4 earnings · top displayed records are not a universal ranking

Career outlook

Jobs this degree may lead to

Federal education-to-career links identify related occupations. They do not imply that every graduate enters the same job.

Pay and projected demand

Related careers do not share one outlook

Bubble size = annual openings2025–35 national projection

Occupation wages describe workers in these jobs, not graduates of this degree. BLS projections are national estimates and do not guarantee hiring.

Instructional Coordinators$77,440 median wage227,760 jobs nationwide+1.6% projected growth through 2035 · 23,100 openings a yearTypical entry education: Master's degree$47,980–$121,670 typical wage rangeTraining and Development Specialists$69,280 median wage458,300 jobs nationwide+10.8% projected growth through 2035 · 46,000 openings a yearTypical entry education: Bachelor's degree$38,760–$123,250 typical wage rangeLibrarians and Media Collections Specialists$68,270 median wage133,790 jobs nationwide+2.6% projected growth through 2035 · 12,600 openings a yearTypical entry education: Master's degree$43,660–$103,990 typical wage range

BLS May 2025 wages and 2025–35 projections. Career figures describe occupations, not graduates of a specific college.

This page keeps the field and credential level fixed. Federal categories can still combine multiple catalog programs or concentrations. Automated ROI is limited to associate and bachelor’s degrees because institution-wide annual net price is not a reliable proxy for short certificate prices. ROI is an illustrative scenario, not a federal determination.