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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 181 | Washington State University at Vancouver | B | $19,500 | $222 | $68,905 | 0.7 yrs |
| 182 | Hobart and William Smith Colleges | B | $27,000 | $307 | $68,831 | 0.9 yrs |
| 183 | University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth | B | $25,000 | $284 | $68,804 | 0.9 yrs |
| 184 | DePaul University | B | $23,168 | $263 | $68,751 | 0.8 yrs |
| 185 | University of Illinois Chicago | A | $16,704 | $190 | $68,740 | 0.6 yrs |
| 186 | California Lutheran University | B | $21,669 | $246 | $68,712 | 0.7 yrs |
| 187 | Furman University | B | $23,250 | $264 | $68,635 | 0.8 yrs |
| 188 | Texas Christian University | B | $21,500 | $244 | $68,424 | 0.7 yrs |
| 189 | University of California, Santa Cruz | A | $16,666 | $189 | $68,396 | 0.6 yrs |
| 190 | Emmanuel College | B | $27,000 | $307 | $68,245 | 0.9 yrs |
| 191 | University of Texas at Dallas Texas | B | $18,000 | $205 | $68,227 | 0.6 yrs |
| 192 | San Francisco State University | A | $15,371 | $175 | $68,077 | 0.5 yrs |
| 193 | Jacksonville University | B | $22,000 | $250 | $68,010 | 0.8 yrs |
| 194 | Washington & Jefferson College | B | $27,000 | $307 | $67,918 | 1 yrs |
| 195 | Denison University | B | $26,000 | $296 | $67,753 | 0.9 yrs |
| 196 | Mount Saint Mary College | B | $26,007 | $296 | $67,705 | 0.9 yrs |
| 197 | University of California, Riverside | B | $17,500 | $199 | $67,699 | 0.6 yrs |
| 198 | Hampden-Sydney College | B | $26,000 | $296 | $67,640 | 0.9 yrs |
| 199 | Whitman College | B | $18,437 | $210 | $67,589 | 0.7 yrs |
| 200 | National University | B | $25,000 | $284 | $67,548 | 0.9 yrs |
| 201 | Ramapo College of New Jersey New Jersey | B | $21,000 | $239 | $67,541 | 0.8 yrs |
| 202 | Suffolk University | B | $26,889 | $306 | $67,506 | 1 yrs |
| 203 | St. Lawrence University | C | $27,000 | $307 | $67,258 | 1 yrs |
| 204 | Michigan State University Michigan | B | $23,250 | $264 | $67,253 | 0.8 yrs |
| 205 | University of Utah Utah | B | $19,000 | $216 | $67,170 | 0.7 yrs |
| 206 | Pacific Lutheran University | B | $22,578 | $257 | $66,990 | 0.8 yrs |
| 207 | Bradley University | C | $27,000 | $307 | $66,852 | 1 yrs |
| 208 | Azusa Pacific University | B | $23,219 | $264 | $66,677 | 0.9 yrs |
| 209 | Rhodes College | B | $21,761 | $247 | $66,651 | 0.8 yrs |
| 210 | Centre College | C | $27,000 | $307 | $66,240 | 1 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.