BACHELOR'S DEGREE · NATIONAL DEGREE OUTCOMES

Is a bachelor's degree in English Language and Literature/Letters, Other worth it?

Compare cost, debt and earnings across 17 college programs with reportable data.

Based onObserved earnings + college priceEstimate10-year payoff
Estimated 10-year payoff
Negative payoff

−$312,206 over 10 years

National scenario across reporting bachelor's degree programs, using median year-4 earnings, their institutions’ average net prices and a typical 4-year duration.

Not availableTime to earn back the modeled cost
−122%Estimated return after 10 years
$39,287Observed earnings · year 4
Not reachedHighest annual price before payoff reaches $0
Start with your decision

What do you need to compare?

PRICE SENSITIVITY

The price can change the verdict.

Hold observed earnings constant and see how the modeled ten-year payoff changes as annual price rises.

What stays fixed$39,287 observed annual earnings · 4 years of study · $45,000 alternative annual earnings · ten-year horizonThe marked price is the average college-wide net-price context across reporting institutions. This is a sensitivity test, not a tuition quote or earnings forecast.
WHAT THIS DEGREE PAYS

Outcomes at a glance

$39,287Typical earnings four years after completion
$50,347Average earnings five years after completion
$25,500Typical federal student debt
3thEarnings percentile among the same degree level
1Degrees awarded in 2024–25
14College programs reporting earnings

Degree counts come from the IPEDS Fall 2025 provisional release and cover 1 matched college records. Colleges without a match are not estimated.

A PRACTICAL READ

Four useful answers about English Language and Literature/Letters, Other

How much do English Language and Literature/Letters, Other bachelor's degree graduates earn?

The national median is $39,287 four years after completion across reportable bachelor's degree programs in this federal field.

How much federal debt do graduates have?

The median reported federal debt is $25,500. The figure excludes private loans and does not describe every graduate.

Does the college matter for English Language and Literature/Letters, Other?

Yes. The middle half of reporting programs ranges from $37,785 to $50,402 in observed year-4 earnings.

What careers are related to English Language and Literature/Letters, Other?

DegreeVerdict links this field to 1 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

Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma

Year-4 earnings
$26,054
Federal debt
Not available
Programs in the comparison
2
2 report earnings →
OPEN PROFILE

Associate's Degree

Year-4 earnings
$36,307
Federal debt
Not available
Programs in the comparison
1
1 report earnings →
CURRENT VIEW

Bachelor's Degree

Year-4 earnings
$39,287
Federal debt
$25,500
Programs in the comparison
17
14 report earnings →
OPEN PROFILE

Master's Degree

Year-4 earnings
$50,671
Federal debt
Not available
Programs in the comparison
3
3 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$37,785National median$39,28775th percentile$50,402
14 programs report year‑4 earnings.
BEFORE YOU CHOOSE

Compare price, debt and earnings together

$50,40275th-percentile year-4 earnings among reporting programs
$25,500Median federal debt across programs that report it
3Programs 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

University of California, San Diego

$57,900 four years after completionLa Jolla, CA · inspect the full program →
Lowest reported federal debt

California State University, Dominguez Hills

$12,879 among completer borrowersCarson, CA · inspect the full program →
Largest recent graduating class

University of Iowa

148 reported awards in 2024–25Iowa City, IA · 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.

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.

17 shortlist matchesSelect up to four · 17 shown
Search every reporting program →
WHERE OUTCOMES ARE STRONGEST

See the spread, not just the national number.

1University of California, San Diego$57,9002California State University, Dominguez Hills$57,2453Empire State University$54,2654Middlebury College$53,9145Bard College$50,4026Rowan University$47,6777University of Iowa$40,4348Suffolk University$38,1399Ohio University-Eastern Campus$37,78510Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus$37,785

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.

English Language and Literature Teachers, Postsecondary$78,760 median wage57,720 jobs nationwide+0.0% projected growth through 2035 · 4,500 openings a yearTypical entry education: Doctoral or professional degree$48,270–$137,250 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.