Ordered by median federal debt at graduation — smallest loan first, with what graduates go on to earn beside it. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 631 | University of Bridgeport Connecticut | D | $25,750 | $293 | $50,323 | 2.4 yrs |
| 632 | Marymount Manhattan College New York | D | $25,750 | $293 | $49,131 | 2.7 yrs |
| 633 | Carroll College Montana | C | $25,757 | $293 | $61,772 | 1.2 yrs |
| 634 | Montreat College North Carolina | F | $25,813 | $293 | $45,151 | 4.6 yrs |
| 635 | Villanova University Pennsylvania | A | $25,874 | $294 | $100,423 | 0.4 yrs |
| 636 | Clarkson University New York | A | $26,000 | $296 | $89,696 | 0.5 yrs |
| 637 | Syracuse University New York | B | $26,000 | $296 | $79,164 | 0.7 yrs |
| 638 | Butler University Indiana | B | $26,000 | $296 | $77,235 | 0.7 yrs |
| 639 | Catholic University of America District of Columbia | B | $26,000 | $296 | $73,250 | 0.8 yrs |
| 640 | University of Redlands California | B | $26,000 | $296 | $72,690 | 0.8 yrs |
| 641 | Denison University Ohio | B | $26,000 | $296 | $67,753 | 0.9 yrs |
| 642 | Hampden-Sydney College Virginia | B | $26,000 | $296 | $67,640 | 0.9 yrs |
| 643 | Wilkes University Pennsylvania | C | $26,000 | $296 | $63,454 | 1.1 yrs |
| 644 | Stevenson University Maryland | C | $26,000 | $296 | $62,079 | 1.2 yrs |
| 645 | York College of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania | C | $26,000 | $296 | $61,012 | 1.2 yrs |
| 646 | Presbyterian College South Carolina | C | $26,000 | $296 | $60,194 | 1.3 yrs |
| 647 | Simpson College Iowa | C | $26,000 | $296 | $59,274 | 1.3 yrs |
| 648 | Oberlin College Ohio | C | $26,000 | $296 | $58,343 | 1.4 yrs |
| 649 | Loras College Iowa | C | $26,000 | $296 | $58,289 | 1.4 yrs |
| 650 | Plymouth State University New Hampshire | C | $26,000 | $296 | $57,304 | 1.5 yrs |
| 651 | St. Bonaventure University New York | C | $26,000 | $296 | $57,214 | 1.5 yrs |
| 652 | LeTourneau University Texas | C | $26,000 | $296 | $57,103 | 1.5 yrs |
| 653 | Carthage College Wisconsin | C | $26,000 | $296 | $56,950 | 1.5 yrs |
| 654 | Lawrence University Wisconsin | C | $26,000 | $296 | $55,789 | 1.6 yrs |
| 655 | Alfred University New York | D | $26,000 | $296 | $54,897 | 1.7 yrs |
| 656 | Wisconsin Lutheran College Wisconsin | D | $26,000 | $296 | $54,664 | 1.7 yrs |
| 657 | Pratt Institute New York | D | $26,000 | $296 | $54,295 | 1.8 yrs |
| 658 | The Kutztown University of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania | D | $26,000 | $296 | $53,775 | 1.8 yrs |
| 659 | Bridgewater College Virginia | D | $26,000 | $296 | $53,453 | 1.9 yrs |
| 660 | Lindenwood University Missouri | D | $26,000 | $296 | $53,278 | 1.9 yrs |
A university can leave students with little debt because it is genuinely affordable — strong institutional aid, low in-state tuition — or because so few of its students borrow that the median falls to a handful of cases. The earnings column beside it is what separates the two.
It counts federal loans only. Private loans, credit cards and parent borrowing sit outside the dataset, so a family that financed college another way appears here as low debt.
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.