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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 151 | Allen College Iowa | B | $18,750 | $213 | $71,261 | 0.6 yrs |
| 152 | University of Denver | B | $21,844 | $248 | $71,155 | 0.7 yrs |
| 153 | University of Detroit Mercy | B | $23,250 | $264 | $71,030 | 0.7 yrs |
| 154 | Widener University Pennsylvania | B | $27,000 | $307 | $70,920 | 0.9 yrs |
| 155 | Illinois Wesleyan University Illinois | B | $27,000 | $307 | $70,871 | 0.9 yrs |
| 156 | University at Buffalo New York | B | $19,000 | $216 | $70,814 | 0.6 yrs |
| 157 | Saint Louis University Missouri | B | $25,000 | $284 | $70,783 | 0.8 yrs |
| 158 | Southern California University of Health Sciences California | A | $11,400 | $130 | $70,649 | 0.4 yrs |
| 159 | DePauw University | B | $27,000 | $307 | $70,527 | 0.9 yrs |
| 160 | Pacific Union College | B | $27,500 | $313 | $70,484 | 0.9 yrs |
| 161 | Pace University New York | B | $23,250 | $264 | $70,378 | 0.8 yrs |
| 162 | Roger Williams University Rhode Island | B | $26,940 | $306 | $70,266 | 0.9 yrs |
| 163 | Dickinson College | B | $19,000 | $216 | $70,204 | 0.6 yrs |
| 164 | Seton Hall University | B | $22,750 | $259 | $70,196 | 0.7 yrs |
| 165 | New York Institute of Technology New York | B | $23,334 | $265 | $70,080 | 0.8 yrs |
| 166 | Chapman University California | B | $20,500 | $233 | $70,070 | 0.7 yrs |
| 167 | University of Maryland, Baltimore County | B | $19,500 | $222 | $69,960 | 0.6 yrs |
| 168 | James Madison University | B | $20,093 | $228 | $69,954 | 0.7 yrs |
| 169 | Wabash College | B | $27,000 | $307 | $69,952 | 0.9 yrs |
| 170 | University of Colorado Boulder Colorado | B | $19,500 | $222 | $69,738 | 0.7 yrs |
| 171 | University of Puget Sound | B | $25,000 | $284 | $69,594 | 0.8 yrs |
| 172 | Pitzer College | A | $16,750 | $190 | $69,512 | 0.6 yrs |
| 173 | Bates College | A | $14,275 | $162 | $69,498 | 0.5 yrs |
| 174 | City University of Seattle Washington | B | $25,000 | $284 | $69,460 | 0.8 yrs |
| 175 | Skidmore College | B | $19,500 | $222 | $69,363 | 0.7 yrs |
| 176 | Thomas Edison State University | A | $12,500 | $142 | $69,331 | 0.4 yrs |
| 177 | Lawrence Technological University | B | $27,000 | $307 | $69,151 | 0.9 yrs |
| 178 | Hofstra University | B | $23,621 | $269 | $69,039 | 0.8 yrs |
| 179 | Wofford College | B | $25,732 | $293 | $68,964 | 0.9 yrs |
| 180 | Washington State University | B | $19,500 | $222 | $68,905 | 0.7 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.