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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 121 | Seattle University Washington | A | $19,883 | $226 | $75,272 | 0.6 yrs |
| 122 | Bryn Mawr College Pennsylvania | B | $25,000 | $284 | $75,217 | 0.7 yrs |
| 123 | University of Texas at Austin Texas | A | $20,500 | $233 | $75,121 | 0.6 yrs |
| 124 | Sacred Heart University Connecticut | B | $25,000 | $284 | $75,059 | 0.7 yrs |
| 125 | Connecticut College Connecticut | B | $23,500 | $267 | $75,001 | 0.7 yrs |
| 126 | University of California, Santa Barbara California | A | $13,993 | $159 | $74,915 | 0.4 yrs |
| 127 | Duquesne University Pennsylvania | B | $26,244 | $298 | $74,742 | 0.8 yrs |
| 128 | University of Scranton Pennsylvania | B | $27,000 | $307 | $74,652 | 0.8 yrs |
| 129 | Wagner College New York | B | $25,000 | $284 | $74,360 | 0.7 yrs |
| 130 | Creighton University Nebraska | B | $25,000 | $284 | $73,911 | 0.7 yrs |
| 131 | Wesleyan University Connecticut | A | $17,000 | $193 | $73,897 | 0.5 yrs |
| 132 | University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Arkansas | A | $14,000 | $159 | $73,827 | 0.4 yrs |
| 133 | University of Wisconsin–Madison Wisconsin | B | $20,484 | $233 | $73,792 | 0.6 yrs |
| 134 | Ursinus College Pennsylvania | B | $27,000 | $307 | $73,721 | 0.8 yrs |
| 135 | Saint Anselm College New Hampshire | B | $27,000 | $307 | $73,371 | 0.8 yrs |
| 136 | The College of New Jersey New Jersey | B | $23,250 | $264 | $73,323 | 0.7 yrs |
| 137 | Catholic University of America District of Columbia | B | $26,000 | $296 | $73,250 | 0.8 yrs |
| 138 | Western New England University Massachusetts | B | $25,500 | $290 | $73,157 | 0.8 yrs |
| 139 | University of Delaware Delaware | B | $24,572 | $279 | $72,950 | 0.7 yrs |
| 140 | University of Redlands California | B | $26,000 | $296 | $72,690 | 0.8 yrs |
| 141 | Purdue University Indiana | B | $19,500 | $222 | $72,424 | 0.6 yrs |
| 142 | Oregon Institute of Technology Oregon | B | $22,500 | $256 | $72,273 | 0.7 yrs |
| 143 | South Dakota School of Mines and Technology South Dakota | B | $27,000 | $307 | $72,257 | 0.8 yrs |
| 144 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill North Carolina | A | $14,000 | $159 | $72,200 | 0.4 yrs |
| 145 | Regis University Colorado | B | $25,000 | $284 | $72,105 | 0.8 yrs |
| 146 | Texas A&M University - College Station Texas | A | $17,804 | $202 | $72,097 | 0.6 yrs |
| 147 | Walsh College Michigan | A | $16,217 | $184 | $72,081 | 0.5 yrs |
| 148 | Drake University Iowa | B | $23,000 | $262 | $71,901 | 0.7 yrs |
| 149 | Kenyon College Ohio | A | $18,527 | $211 | $71,830 | 0.6 yrs |
| 150 | Trinity University Texas | B | $22,954 | $261 | $71,668 | 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.