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 $57,146 against $22,500 of debt.
| # | University | Grade | You borrow | Monthly | You earn | Debt clears in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 721 | Purdue University Fort Wayne Indiana | F | $21,500 | $244 | $45,872 | 3.4 yrs |
| 722 | Point Park University Pennsylvania | F | $27,000 | $307 | $45,856 | 4.3 yrs |
| 723 | Colorado Mesa University Colorado | F | $22,000 | $250 | $45,823 | 3.5 yrs |
| 724 | National-Louis University Illinois | F | $19,750 | $225 | $45,799 | 3.2 yrs |
| 725 | Eastern Kentucky University Kentucky | F | $22,500 | $256 | $45,795 | 3.6 yrs |
| 726 | Idaho State University Idaho | F | $20,039 | $228 | $45,608 | 3.3 yrs |
| 727 | University of South Carolina - Aiken South Carolina | F | $24,275 | $276 | $45,603 | 4 yrs |
| 728 | Virginia State University Virginia | F | $26,500 | $301 | $45,543 | 4.4 yrs |
| 729 | Nicholls State University Louisiana | F | $22,675 | $258 | $45,454 | 3.8 yrs |
| 730 | Fisk University Tennessee | F | $27,000 | $307 | $45,454 | 4.6 yrs |
| 731 | Everett Community College Washington | D | $10,417 | $118 | $45,434 | 1.8 yrs |
| 732 | Madison Area Technical College Wisconsin | D | $14,060 | $160 | $45,413 | 2.4 yrs |
| 733 | Northeastern State University Oklahoma | F | $17,367 | $197 | $45,379 | 3 yrs |
| 734 | Evergreen State College Washington | F | $20,500 | $233 | $45,320 | 3.5 yrs |
| 735 | Sierra College California | D | $10,500 | $119 | $45,294 | 1.8 yrs |
| 736 | University of Arkansas - Little Rock Arkansas | F | $22,000 | $250 | $45,265 | 3.8 yrs |
| 737 | Jacksonville State University Alabama | F | $22,189 | $252 | $45,235 | 3.9 yrs |
| 738 | Montreat College North Carolina | F | $25,813 | $293 | $45,151 | 4.6 yrs |
| 739 | Davenport University Michigan | F | $26,000 | $296 | $45,099 | 4.7 yrs |
| 740 | Thomas College Maine | F | $24,250 | $276 | $44,991 | 4.4 yrs |
| 741 | East Central University Oklahoma | F | $17,671 | $201 | $44,962 | 3.3 yrs |
| 742 | Indiana University at South Bend Indiana | F | $21,355 | $243 | $44,947 | 3.9 yrs |
| 743 | East Tennessee State University Tennessee | F | $19,442 | $221 | $44,859 | 3.6 yrs |
| 744 | Liberty University Virginia | F | $24,500 | $279 | $44,813 | 4.6 yrs |
| 745 | University of New Mexico New Mexico | F | $18,450 | $210 | $44,792 | 3.5 yrs |
| 746 | Waubonsee Community College Illinois | C | $7,000 | $80 | $44,788 | 1.3 yrs |
| 747 | Murray State University Kentucky | F | $20,500 | $233 | $44,737 | 3.9 yrs |
| 748 | Norfolk State University Virginia | F | $29,000 | $330 | $44,666 | 5.6 yrs |
| 749 | Harford Community College Maryland | D | $9,812 | $112 | $44,608 | 1.9 yrs |
| 750 | Portland Community College Oregon | D | $12,999 | $148 | $44,592 | 2.6 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.