DOCTORAL DEGREE · NATIONAL DEGREE OUTCOMES
Is a doctoral degree in Educational/Instructional Media Design worth it?
Compare cost, debt and earnings across 4 college programs with reportable data.
Personal baseline needed
$91,077 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.
$91,077Median year-4 earnings
$26,156Average institution net-price context
Not availableMedian federal debt
Start with your decision
What do you need to compare?
Outcomes at a glance
$91,077Typical earnings four years after completion
$93,378Average earnings five years after completion
Not availableTypical federal student debt
33thEarnings percentile among the same degree level
23Degrees awarded in 2024–25
4College programs reporting earnings
Degree counts come from the IPEDS Fall 2025 provisional release and cover 4 matched college records. Colleges without a match are not estimated.
Four useful answers about Educational/Instructional Media Design
How much do Educational/Instructional Media Design doctoral degree graduates earn?
The national median is $91,077 four years after completion across reportable doctoral 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 $82,741 to $92,765 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.
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
Bachelor's Degree
- Year-4 earnings
- $68,414
- Federal debt
- $37,758
- Programs in the comparison
- 3
Post-baccalaureate Certificate
- Year-4 earnings
- $59,669
- Federal debt
- $19,294
- Programs in the comparison
- 1
Master's Degree
- Year-4 earnings
- $71,246
- Federal debt
- Not available
- Programs in the comparison
- 83
Doctoral Degree
- Year-4 earnings
- $91,077
- Federal debt
- Not available
- Programs in the comparison
- 4
Graduate/Professional Certificate
- Year-4 earnings
- $76,444
- Federal debt
- Not available
- Programs in the comparison
- 4
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$82,741National median$91,07775th percentile$92,765
4 programs report year‑4 earnings.BEFORE YOU CHOOSE
Compare price, debt and earnings together
SHORTLIST BY QUESTION
Three useful places to start
Each choice answers a different question. These are observed signals, not an overall winner.
Choose colleges offering this exact degree
Start with the highest-earning reported programs below, or open the full directory to search every college.
4 shortlist matchesSelect up to four · 4 shown
Search every reporting program →
See the spread, not just the national number.
1Pepperdine University$133,0312University of Phoenix-Arizona$92,7653Capella University$89,3894Kennesaw State University$82,741Observed year-4 earnings · top displayed records are not a universal ranking
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
Higher median wage ↑
-7%Projected employment growth →13%
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.