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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 781 | Southwest Baptist University Missouri | F | $20,957 | $238 | $43,112 | 5.8 yrs |
| 782 | Gallaudet University District of Columbia | F | $18,000 | $205 | $43,101 | 5 yrs |
| 783 | Stephens College Missouri | F | $27,000 | $307 | $43,071 | 7.6 yrs |
| 784 | North Carolina Central University North Carolina | F | $28,250 | $321 | $42,968 | 8.2 yrs |
| 785 | ECPI University Virginia | F | $20,000 | $227 | $42,837 | 6 yrs |
| 786 | Walden University Minnesota | F | $20,834 | $237 | $42,810 | 6.3 yrs |
| 787 | Tennessee State University Tennessee | F | $27,000 | $307 | $42,730 | 8.4 yrs |
| 788 | Johnson C. Smith University North Carolina | F | $30,000 | $341 | $42,680 | 9.5 yrs |
| 789 | Arkansas State University Arkansas | F | $20,500 | $233 | $42,617 | 6.6 yrs |
| 790 | St. Petersburg College Florida | F | $16,868 | $192 | $42,557 | 5.6 yrs |
| 791 | Oakwood University Alabama | F | $27,000 | $307 | $42,488 | 9.1 yrs |
| 792 | William Woods University Missouri | F | $21,983 | $250 | $42,401 | 7.6 yrs |
| 793 | Lander University South Carolina | F | $25,000 | $284 | $42,396 | 8.7 yrs |
| 794 | Southern Arkansas University Arkansas | F | $18,750 | $213 | $42,386 | 6.5 yrs |
| 795 | Prescott College Arizona | F | $16,300 | $185 | $42,359 | 5.7 yrs |
| 796 | Florida State College at Jacksonville Florida | F | $13,562 | $154 | $42,244 | 5 yrs |
| 797 | Louisiana State University at Alexandria Louisiana | F | $19,000 | $216 | $42,205 | 7.1 yrs |
| 798 | Columbia College Chicago Illinois | F | $25,000 | $284 | $42,195 | 9.4 yrs |
| 799 | Capella University Minnesota | F | $14,968 | $170 | $42,189 | 5.6 yrs |
| 800 | Grand Canyon University Arizona | F | $22,114 | $251 | $42,186 | 8.3 yrs |
| 801 | Anderson University South Carolina | F | $26,700 | $304 | $42,101 | 10.3 yrs |
| 802 | Troy University Alabama | F | $25,000 | $284 | $42,062 | 9.8 yrs |
| 803 | Delta State University Mississippi | F | $20,390 | $232 | $41,991 | 8.3 yrs |
| 804 | Broward College Florida | F | $7,500 | $85 | $41,939 | 3.1 yrs |
| 805 | Palm Beach State College Florida | F | $7,081 | $81 | $41,923 | 3 yrs |
| 806 | University of Science & Arts of Oklahoma Oklahoma | F | $21,750 | $247 | $41,913 | 9.1 yrs |
| 807 | Sul Ross State University Texas | F | $15,900 | $181 | $41,871 | 6.8 yrs |
| 808 | Arkansas Tech University Arkansas | F | $21,000 | $239 | $41,766 | 9.4 yrs |
| 809 | Hagerstown Community College Maryland | F | $11,000 | $125 | $41,615 | 5.3 yrs |
| 810 | Youngstown State University Ohio | F | $24,000 | $273 | $41,544 | 11.9 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.