Is Georgia Southwestern State University Worth It?

Georgia Southwestern State University gives you a low upfront cost with an uneven payoff. At roughly $12,000 a year in net price and under $19,000 in median debt, you won't borrow heavily, and median earnings a decade out land near $49,000. The problem is who finishes: only about a third of students graduate, and fewer than two in three come back after freshman year. That completion risk is the single biggest threat to your return here.

Your major decides everything. Nursing is the clear winner, paying over $63,000 with debt that stays under $19,000 , a strong return for the price. Computer science follows at $53,000. Business and accounting land in the low-to-mid $40s and $30s. Teacher education is the weakest, paying around $33,000 while carrying the highest program debt on the list at over $22,000. If you're taking on that debt for an education degree, the math works against you.

The net price tiers are gentle at the bottom and steeper at the top. If your family earns under $30,000, you pay about $10,600. over $110,000, you pay roughly $15,600. The gap between tiers is modest, so aid does less to cushion lower-income families than at many public schools. Budget for four or more years, not two.

This school fits you if you're headed into nursing or computer science and can commit to finishing. The debt is manageable and the payoff is real in those fields. Look elsewhere if you're planning to major in teacher education, where you'd carry the most debt for the lowest pay, or if the low graduation and retention rates suggest you'd struggle to stay enrolled. The cost is low, but only if you actually walk out with a degree that pays.