MAJORS · 8 OF 19 BY ROI

Is a miscellaneous degree worth it?

On average, yes — the mean lifetime ROI is +$189,612. But the spread is the real story.

MEAN LIFETIME ROI · FREOPP 2021 · COHORT-WEIGHTED

+$189,612

across 1,743 bachelor’s programs · 162,405 graduates

MEDIAN GRADUATE

+$125K

MIDDLE 50% LAND BETWEEN

−$17K ⟷ +$344K

NEVER BREAK EVEN

30.1%

MEDIAN BREAK-EVEN AGE

35

ADJUSTED FOR REAL COMPLETION RATES

+$78K

IF YOU DROP OUT

−$107K

The biggest fields inside Miscellaneous

  1. Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other. 44,581 grads +$425K
  2. Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services. 24,101 grads −$39K
  3. Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics. 17,502 grads +$115K
  4. International/Global Studies. 7,379 grads +$298K
  5. Foods, Nutrition, and Related Services. 7,373 grads +$18K

Mean lifetime ROI per field, cohort-weighted. A category average hides this spread — and the per-school spread inside each field is wider still.

Questions

Is a miscellaneous degree worth it?
On average yes — across 1,743 U.S. bachelor’s programs (FREOPP 2021, cohort-weighted), the mean lifetime ROI for Miscellaneous is +$189,612 and the median is +$124,545. 30.1% of graduates in this category never break even on the degree. The honest answer depends heavily on the specific program and school: the middle half of graduates land between −$17,052 and +$343,903.
How long until a miscellaneous degree pays off?
Among Miscellaneous programs that do break even, the median graduate crosses into positive ROI at age 35 (FREOPP 2021). 30.1% of graduates in the category are in programs that never break even at all.
Does the school matter for a miscellaneous major?
Enormously. The middle 50% of Miscellaneous graduates span −$17,052 to +$343,903 — a +$361K spread within one major. The same field can be a strong trade at one school and a losing one at another, which is why the per-school number matters more than the category average.

↓ Download the data (CSV) · All 19 categories with full statistics. Free to cite with attribution. · Methodology

Cite this:

LE TEEN (2026). “Miscellaneous: lifetime ROI statistics.” Data: FREOPP 2021. https://le-teen.com/majors/miscellaneous