Ordered by median earnings ten years after entry — with the debt each cohort carries, because a big salary against a bigger loan is not a win. The typical graded US university clears its debt in 1.3 years on median earnings of $57,089 against $22,500 of debt.
| # | University | Grade | You borrow | Monthly | You earn | Debt clears in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 391 | Marietta College | C | $27,000 | $307 | $57,180 | 1.5 yrs |
| 392 | Trine University | C | $25,000 | $284 | $57,165 | 1.4 yrs |
| 393 | California State University, Dominguez Hills | B | $13,807 | $157 | $57,162 | 0.8 yrs |
| 394 | University of Texas at San Antonio Texas | C | $20,500 | $233 | $57,131 | 1.2 yrs |
| 395 | Coe College | C | $27,000 | $307 | $57,125 | 1.5 yrs |
| 396 | university of illinois springfield Illinois | C | $19,128 | $217 | $57,103 | 1.1 yrs |
| 397 | LeTourneau University | C | $26,000 | $296 | $57,103 | 1.5 yrs |
| 398 | Hood College | C | $25,000 | $284 | $57,089 | 1.4 yrs |
| 399 | University of Texas at Tyler | C | $17,137 | $195 | $57,053 | 1 yrs |
| 400 | University of North Texas | C | $19,250 | $219 | $57,010 | 1.1 yrs |
| 401 | University of Findlay Ohio | C | $25,439 | $289 | $56,996 | 1.5 yrs |
| 402 | Carthage College | C | $26,000 | $296 | $56,950 | 1.5 yrs |
| 403 | Minnesota State University, Mankato | C | $21,106 | $240 | $56,922 | 1.2 yrs |
| 404 | Juniata College | C | $27,000 | $307 | $56,918 | 1.6 yrs |
| 405 | Willamette University | C | $21,500 | $244 | $56,911 | 1.2 yrs |
| 406 | Texas State University | C | $21,000 | $239 | $56,906 | 1.2 yrs |
| 407 | University of Nebraska, Lincoln | C | $21,000 | $239 | $56,887 | 1.2 yrs |
| 408 | University of Wyoming | C | $18,000 | $205 | $56,880 | 1 yrs |
| 409 | Southwestern University | C | $25,000 | $284 | $56,878 | 1.4 yrs |
| 410 | Dallas Baptist University | C | $21,591 | $245 | $56,807 | 1.3 yrs |
| 411 | Biola University | C | $23,875 | $271 | $56,778 | 1.4 yrs |
| 412 | Florida Atlantic University | C | $17,236 | $196 | $56,746 | 1 yrs |
| 413 | University of the Incarnate Word | C | $27,000 | $307 | $56,733 | 1.6 yrs |
| 414 | University of Jamestown | C | $27,000 | $307 | $56,621 | 1.6 yrs |
| 415 | Texas Woman's University | C | $19,218 | $219 | $56,544 | 1.1 yrs |
| 416 | Eastern Connecticut State University | C | $24,250 | $276 | $56,469 | 1.4 yrs |
| 417 | College of Charleston | C | $23,250 | $264 | $56,416 | 1.4 yrs |
| 418 | State University of New York at Plattsburgh | C | $21,196 | $241 | $56,403 | 1.3 yrs |
| 419 | Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania | C | $25,000 | $284 | $56,351 | 1.5 yrs |
| 420 | Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville | C | $20,500 | $233 | $56,346 | 1.2 yrs |
Several universities near the top of this list also carry some of the heaviest borrowing in the country. Earning well while repaying heavily is not obviously better than earning less with nothing to repay — which is why the debt column sits right beside the salary.
The earnings figure blends every subject a university teaches. A campus that teaches nothing but medicine or engineering reports the medicine or engineering number; a broad university reports a blended one, however strong its individual departments are.
Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard. Figures cover students who received federal financial aid and blend every subject at each institution. Information only, not financial advice.