First professional · West Des Moines, Iowa

Is Medicine at Des Moines University-Osteopathic Medical Center worth it?

High confidence High confidence: 100+ 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 5.7 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $68,889; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $171,946; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $278,566; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Typical borrowing (no graduate net price is published): $295k (likely $295k – $295k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $108k a year vs bachelor's graduates 4 years out in IA; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 5.7 years (likely 5.0–6.3); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: $239k (likely $130k – $347k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $1.51M (likely $1.24M – $1.81M); Today's dollars

Scorecard reports no net price for graduate programs; cost is based on what graduates typically borrowed.