Why Degree ROI Matters More Than Ever
Total student loan debt in the United States has surpassed $1.7 trillion across roughly 43 million borrowers. The average 2025 graduate leaves school owing around $33,500, and that figure climbs above $55,000 at many private institutions. Meanwhile, wages for many entry-level positions requiring a bachelor's degree have stagnated relative to inflation over the past decade.
The result is a growing gap between what students pay for a degree and what that degree actually earns them. Federal Reserve Bank of New York data shows that roughly one in four bachelor's holders work in jobs that do not require a four-year degree. For certain majors, that underemployment rate exceeds 50 percent.
None of this means college is universally a bad bet. The median bachelor's holder still outeams the median high school graduate by about $1.2 million over a lifetime, according to Georgetown CEW. But that figure is an average across all majors. The variance between the highest-ROI degrees (engineering, computer science, nursing) and the lowest is staggering. Picking the wrong major at the wrong price can leave you worse off financially than if you had skipped college entirely.
How We Measured "Not Worth It"
We analyzed five data points for each major across multiple federal and institutional data sources. Early-career median earnings (ages 22 to 27) from the New York Fed's labor market data. Mid-career median earnings (ages 35 to 45) from Georgetown CEW. Underemployment rate, meaning the share of graduates in jobs that do not require a bachelor's degree. Unemployment rate for recent graduates from NCES and BLS data. And estimated 20-year net ROI after subtracting average tuition, fees, and opportunity cost of four years of forgone earnings.
A degree landed on this list when it showed a combination of below-average earnings, above-average underemployment, shrinking job openings, or negative 20-year ROI from mid-tier private institutions.
The 15 Degrees Losing Value in 2026
Below are 15 degree programs where the data raises serious ROI concerns. This does not mean every graduate of these programs will struggle. Individual outcomes vary enormously based on institution, geographic market, skill development, and career strategy. But on average, these fields deliver the weakest returns relative to cost.
| Rank | Degree | Median Early Pay | Underemploy. Rate | Key Risk Factor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | General Communications | $33,000 | 52% | Extremely broad; no clear career pipeline |
| 2 | Fine Arts (Studio Art / Painting) | $30,000 | 54% | Freelance-dependent; few salaried openings |
| 3 | Hospitality & Tourism Management | $34,500 | 48% | Industry positions rarely require a B.A. |
| 4 | Psychology (B.A. only, no grad school) | $32,000 | 50% | Graduate degree needed for most clinical roles |
| 5 | Sociology (General) | $33,500 | 47% | Limited direct career applications |
| 6 | Film & Photography | $31,000 | 53% | Portfolio matters more than degree |
| 7 | Anthropology | $32,500 | 48% | Very few B.A.-level positions exist |
| 8 | Liberal Arts / General Studies | $33,000 | 51% | No specialization signal to employers |
| 9 | Education (Non-STEM, Non-Special Ed) | $34,000 | 18% | Low underemployment but very low pay ceiling |
| 10 | Criminal Justice | $35,000 | 44% | Most law enforcement jobs do not require a B.A. |
| 11 | Religious Studies / Theology | $31,500 | 42% | Narrow ministry pipeline; low private-sector demand |
| 12 | Performing Arts (Theater / Dance) | $29,500 | 56% | Gig economy; success is portfolio-based |
| 13 | Interdisciplinary Studies | $33,500 | 50% | Employers cannot parse the skill signal |
| 14 | Leisure & Fitness Studies | $31,500 | 45% | Personal training certifications suffice |
| 15 | Human Services (General) | $32,500 | 41% | Low pay ceiling even at mid-career |
Sources: Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Georgetown CEW, NCES. Figures represent national medians and will vary by institution and region.
Common Threads: Why These Majors Underperform
The 15 degrees above share several structural weaknesses that suppress earnings and career outcomes regardless of the student's talent or effort.
The most common issue is weak employer demand for the specific credential. When the majority of available jobs in a field do not actually require the degree that supposedly prepares you for that field, you are paying for a signal that employers are not reading. Criminal justice, hospitality, and fitness studies all fall into this trap. Employers in those sectors hire based on certifications, experience, or associate-level credentials, making the four-year degree an expensive redundancy.
The second pattern is the graduate school bottleneck. Psychology and anthropology are classic examples: the bachelor's degree alone does not qualify you for the professional work the major describes. You need a master's or doctorate to practice as a therapist, researcher, or anthropologist. If you stop at the B.A., you are left with a generalist credential competing against every other generalist in the job market.
The third factor is portfolio-based fields where the degree itself is secondary to demonstrated work. Film, photography, fine arts, and performing arts careers are driven by portfolios, reels, auditions, and professional networks. The $120,000 or more spent on a four-year art program rarely changes hiring outcomes compared to self-taught artists with strong portfolios and hustle.
Finally, several of these majors suffer from what economists call low earnings variance: the ceiling is almost as low as the floor. Education and human services are stable fields with low unemployment, but the pay band is narrow and largely fixed by public-sector salary schedules. There is limited upside even for top performers.
What to Study Instead
If you are drawn to a field on the list above, the solution is usually not to abandon your interest entirely but to find a higher-ROI version of it. Psychology students who add data analytics or behavioral science concentrations see significantly better outcomes. Communications majors who specialize in digital marketing, UX writing, or public relations earn 30 to 50 percent more than generalists. Criminal justice students who pivot to cybersecurity, intelligence analysis, or forensic accounting enter growing fields with six-figure ceilings.
For students focused purely on ROI, the data consistently favors the same cluster of fields. Computer science, nursing, finance, engineering disciplines, and applied mathematics deliver median early-career earnings above $55,000 and 20-year ROI figures that justify even expensive private-school tuition. BLS projections show each of these fields growing at or above average through 2034.
The Trade School Alternative
For many students, the highest-ROI path may not involve a four-year degree at all. BLS data shows that electricians earn a median of $65,280, plumbers earn $65,190, and HVAC technicians earn $57,850, all without any college debt. Apprenticeship programs pay you while you train, and many journey-level tradespeople earn above $80,000 within five years of starting.
The skilled trades are also among the most AI-resistant careers in the economy. While generative AI can draft a communications report or generate marketing copy, it cannot wire a house, clear a drain, or install a commercial HVAC system. For students whose primary goal is financial security and job stability, the trades deserve serious consideration alongside any four-year degree program.
Read our full guide to America's Blue-Collar Job Boom for a deep dive into the data behind skilled trade career growth.
Making a Low-ROI Major Work
If you are passionate about a field on this list and committed to pursuing it, there are strategies to improve your outcomes significantly. Choose the most affordable institution possible: attend a community college for your first two years, transfer to an in-state public university, and minimize debt. A $25,000 education in psychology has a very different ROI profile than a $180,000 one.
Stack marketable skills alongside your major. Take courses or earn certificates in data analysis, project management, coding, or digital marketing. Employers are increasingly looking for hybrid skill sets, and a sociology major who can build dashboards in Tableau is far more employable than one who cannot.
Build professional experience before graduation. Internships, freelance projects, and part-time jobs in your target field dramatically improve hiring outcomes for majors where entry-level positions are competitive. The students who struggle most after graduation in these fields are those who relied entirely on the degree as their job-search credential.
Bottom Line
The era of choosing a college major based purely on interest, without considering economic outcomes, is over. With tuition costs continuing to rise and the labor market increasingly favoring specialized skills, students owe it to themselves to run the numbers before committing four years and tens of thousands of dollars to a degree that may not pay off.
That said, this is not a case for abandoning liberal arts or following your passion. It is a case for being strategic about how you pursue that passion. The data shows that the combination of the right major, the right institution, the right price, and the right supplementary skills can make almost any field viable. The key is making that decision with eyes open rather than defaulting into a degree because it seemed interesting during freshman orientation.
Not sure which direction is right for you? Take the free MajorMatch quiz to see which majors and career paths align with your personality, strengths, and goals.
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