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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | University of California, Berkeley | A | $13,000 | $148 | $92,446 | 0.3 yrs |
| 32 | Texas Tech University-Health Sciences Center | A | $12,268 | $139 | $92,348 | 0.2 yrs |
| 33 | University of Chicago Illinois | A | $15,000 | $171 | $91,885 | 0.3 yrs |
| 34 | Vanderbilt University Tennessee | A | $14,000 | $159 | $91,565 | 0.3 yrs |
| 35 | Lafayette College | A | $16,000 | $182 | $91,410 | 0.3 yrs |
| 36 | George Washington University | A | $20,449 | $233 | $90,873 | 0.4 yrs |
| 37 | California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo | A | $18,500 | $210 | $90,768 | 0.4 yrs |
| 38 | United States Merchant Marine Academy | A | $8,833 | $100 | $90,610 | 0.2 yrs |
| 39 | College of the Holy Cross | A | $27,000 | $307 | $90,543 | 0.5 yrs |
| 40 | Bryant University Rhode Island | A | $26,849 | $305 | $90,008 | 0.5 yrs |
| 41 | Loma Linda University | A | $20,854 | $237 | $89,816 | 0.4 yrs |
| 42 | University of San Francisco California | A | $23,000 | $262 | $89,812 | 0.5 yrs |
| 43 | Rice University Texas | A | $11,000 | $125 | $89,718 | 0.2 yrs |
| 44 | Clarkson University New York | A | $26,000 | $296 | $89,696 | 0.5 yrs |
| 45 | Milwaukee School of Engineering | A | $27,000 | $307 | $89,070 | 0.5 yrs |
| 46 | Williams College | A | $12,761 | $145 | $88,665 | 0.3 yrs |
| 47 | Union College | A | $25,337 | $288 | $88,604 | 0.5 yrs |
| 48 | University of Maryland, Baltimore | A | $15,000 | $171 | $88,174 | 0.3 yrs |
| 49 | Case Western Reserve University Ohio | A | $24,000 | $273 | $87,989 | 0.5 yrs |
| 50 | Johns Hopkins University Maryland | A | $10,250 | $117 | $87,555 | 0.2 yrs |
| 51 | Golden Gate University California | B | $29,875 | $340 | $87,434 | 0.6 yrs |
| 52 | Providence College | A | $27,000 | $307 | $87,054 | 0.6 yrs |
| 53 | University of Virginia Virginia | A | $17,500 | $199 | $86,863 | 0.4 yrs |
| 54 | University of San Diego California | A | $22,940 | $261 | $86,522 | 0.5 yrs |
| 55 | Fordham University | A | $24,300 | $276 | $85,569 | 0.5 yrs |
| 56 | Colgate University | A | $15,000 | $171 | $85,139 | 0.3 yrs |
| 57 | Capitol Technology University | A | $20,264 | $230 | $85,035 | 0.5 yrs |
| 58 | University of California, San Diego | A | $15,500 | $176 | $84,943 | 0.3 yrs |
| 59 | Wellesley College | A | $10,000 | $114 | $84,803 | 0.2 yrs |
| 60 | Dominican University of California California | B | $27,000 | $307 | $84,713 | 0.6 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.