Bachelor's · Raleigh, North Carolina

Is History at North Carolina State University at Raleigh worth it?

Medium confidence Medium confidence: 40–99 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 6.5 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $43,648; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $53,169; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $17,516; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $70k (likely $70k – $90k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $17k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in NC; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 6.5 years (likely 4.9–9.4); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: −$82k (likely −$154k – −$16k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $133k (likely −$10k – $284k); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 85%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26