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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 91 | San Jose State University California | A | $15,000 | $171 | $78,988 | 0.4 yrs |
| 92 | Gonzaga University Washington | B | $24,454 | $278 | $78,892 | 0.6 yrs |
| 93 | Saint Mary's College of California California | B | $23,691 | $269 | $78,812 | 0.6 yrs |
| 94 | Hamilton College New York | A | $17,000 | $193 | $78,411 | 0.4 yrs |
| 95 | Southern Methodist University Texas | A | $19,500 | $222 | $78,354 | 0.5 yrs |
| 96 | Loyola Marymount University California | A | $19,500 | $222 | $78,349 | 0.5 yrs |
| 97 | Marquette University Wisconsin | B | $23,940 | $272 | $78,257 | 0.6 yrs |
| 98 | Michigan Technological University Michigan | B | $24,990 | $284 | $78,198 | 0.7 yrs |
| 99 | Wake Forest University North Carolina | A | $21,500 | $244 | $78,158 | 0.6 yrs |
| 100 | Pomona College California | A | $11,782 | $134 | $77,779 | 0.3 yrs |
| 101 | Amherst College Massachusetts | A | $13,740 | $156 | $77,644 | 0.4 yrs |
| 102 | Thomas Jefferson University Pennsylvania | A | $14,744 | $168 | $77,449 | 0.4 yrs |
| 103 | American University District of Columbia | B | $22,750 | $259 | $77,370 | 0.6 yrs |
| 104 | Virginia Military Institute Virginia | B | $22,996 | $261 | $77,369 | 0.6 yrs |
| 105 | Butler University Indiana | B | $26,000 | $296 | $77,235 | 0.7 yrs |
| 106 | Brandeis University Massachusetts | B | $25,648 | $292 | $77,231 | 0.7 yrs |
| 107 | Colorado State University - Global Campus Colorado | B | $25,000 | $284 | $76,813 | 0.7 yrs |
| 108 | Rochester Institute of Technology New York | B | $26,778 | $304 | $76,571 | 0.7 yrs |
| 109 | New Mexico Institute of Mining & Technology New Mexico | A | $19,085 | $217 | $76,489 | 0.5 yrs |
| 110 | George Mason University Virginia | A | $19,500 | $222 | $76,343 | 0.5 yrs |
| 111 | Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey California | A | $13,857 | $158 | $76,310 | 0.4 yrs |
| 112 | Middlebury College Vermont | A | $13,857 | $158 | $76,310 | 0.4 yrs |
| 113 | University of Richmond Virginia | A | $21,000 | $239 | $76,178 | 0.6 yrs |
| 114 | Franklin and Marshall College Pennsylvania | A | $19,000 | $216 | $76,124 | 0.5 yrs |
| 115 | Occidental College California | B | $23,000 | $262 | $75,951 | 0.6 yrs |
| 116 | Brigham Young University Utah | A | $11,069 | $126 | $75,790 | 0.3 yrs |
| 117 | University of Dayton Ohio | B | $23,250 | $264 | $75,537 | 0.7 yrs |
| 118 | Carleton College Minnesota | A | $16,750 | $190 | $75,525 | 0.5 yrs |
| 119 | Adelphi University New York | B | $25,000 | $284 | $75,482 | 0.7 yrs |
| 120 | University of Miami Florida | A | $17,500 | $199 | $75,328 | 0.5 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.