Ashford University
San Diego, CA, United States
Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition
Photo: FASTILY, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Ashford University has 66 programs with reported graduate earnings. The highest is Business Administration, Management and Operations (doctoral), where graduates earn a median $112,020 one year after finishing, against $102,379 for the same field nationally.
Graduation rate
First-time, full-time students finishing within 150% of normal time
First-year retention
Students who return for a second year
Median earnings
$39,232
Former students who received federal aid
Source: U.S. College Scorecard, field of study, 2025
Median earnings of graduates who received federal aid, one and four years after finishing, and the median federal loan debt they borrowed at Ashford University. The field median is the middle value for the same field and credential across every college that reports it. 8 more programs have too few graduates for earnings to be published.
Highest-earning programs
| Program | Graduates | Earnings 1 yr | Earnings 4 yr | Field median | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | 32 | $102,911 | N/A | $80,62828% above | N/A |
| Computer Engineering | 72 | $91,288 | N/A | $80,98713% above | $29,250 |
| Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management | 106 | $82,959 | N/A | $62,19433% above | $32,812 |
| International Business | 4 | N/A | $81,292 | $73,64010% above | N/A |
| Management Information Systems and Services | 92 | $77,220 | $77,907 | $81,4244% below | $22,000 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | 1,735 | $65,262 | $71,782 | $64,59011% above | $28,125 |
| Educational/Instructional Media Design | 31 | N/A | $68,414 | $68,4140% above | $29,813 |
| Public Administration | 3 | N/A | $68,344 | $64,9535% above | N/A |
| Computer and Information Sciences, General | 95 | $67,937 | N/A | $65,2554% above | $31,847 |
| Marketing | 75 | $55,686 | $66,307 | $66,5420% above | $26,182 |
| Business/Managerial Economics | 20 | $61,767 | $65,737 | $80,25818% below | N/A |
| Human Resources Management and Services | 290 | $55,371 | $65,002 | $67,0253% below | $29,813 |
| Finance and Financial Management Services | 130 | $59,325 | $64,426 | $77,31217% below | $20,188 |
| Communication and Media Studies | 23 | $61,299 | $61,909 | $53,82515% above | N/A |
| Accounting and Related Services | 120 | $55,751 | $61,522 | $73,05416% below | $35,017 |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections | 338 | $55,204 | $60,144 | $54,46910% above | $28,185 |
| Real Estate | 18 | $56,731 | $58,733 | $82,24629% below | $33,594 |
| Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and Services | 3 | $39,182 | $56,666 | $51,17111% above | N/A |
| Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General | 3 | N/A | $55,689 | $59,8817% below | N/A |
| Natural Resources Conservation and Research | 5 | $51,336 | $55,435 | $54,6271% above | N/A |
| Political Science and Government | 16 | $63,415 | $54,740 | $61,61311% below | $29,937 |
| Health and Medical Administrative Services | 400 | $51,991 | $53,801 | $58,5188% below | $29,688 |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness | 17 | $50,650 | $51,665 | $53,0243% below | $35,938 |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities | 59 | $51,810 | $51,307 | $52,0201% below | $26,120 |
| Sociology | 90 | $48,948 | $51,004 | $52,1052% below | $32,294 |
| Gerontology | 1 | N/A | $49,843 | $55,89811% below | N/A |
| History | 21 | $47,960 | $49,773 | $50,3871% below | $31,000 |
| Social Sciences, General | 9 | $38,389 | $48,970 | $52,0956% below | N/A |
| Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions | 93 | $43,711 | $48,922 | $52,2276% below | $29,500 |
| Psychology, General | 448 | $44,899 | $48,325 | $50,0663% below | $33,000 |
| Education, General | 110 | $42,526 | $47,107 | $49,2394% below | $31,250 |
| English Language and Literature, General | 17 | $41,833 | $47,071 | $48,7733% below | $44,713 |
| Behavioral Sciences | 153 | $43,390 | $45,157 | $47,6125% below | $31,249 |
| Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services | 81 | $41,429 | $44,852 | $47,2695% below | $29,880 |
| Journalism | 20 | $39,289 | $44,589 | $54,37818% below | $33,572 |
| Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research | 1 | $39,582 | $44,242 | $46,2054% below | N/A |
| Alternative and Complementary Medicine and Medical Systems | 46 | $43,308 | $44,036 | $42,1554% above | $40,444 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods | 451 | $39,734 | $43,748 | $47,7308% below | $31,375 |
| Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations | 34 | $39,274 | $43,140 | $62,35031% below | $40,675 |
| Anthropology | 3 | $30,713 | $41,266 | $45,83310% below | N/A |
| Special Education and Teaching | 31 | $39,382 | N/A | $46,75016% below | $29,347 |
| Library Science and Administration | 11 | $31,674 | $38,786 | $32,30120% above | $29,812 |
| Teaching English or French as a Second or Foreign Language | 4 | $33,428 | N/A | $39,37815% below | N/A |
| Program | Graduates | Earnings 1 yr | Earnings 4 yr | Field median | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Military Applied Sciences | 2 | N/A | $79,860 | $79,8600% above | N/A |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods | 160 | $33,499 | $36,261 | $37,8984% below | $23,938 |
| Program | Graduates | Earnings 1 yr | Earnings 4 yr | Field median | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Management Information Systems and Services | 70 | $108,051 | N/A | $79,98135% above | $32,708 |
| Finance and Financial Management Services | 22 | $93,916 | N/A | $86,8968% above | N/A |
| Medical Illustration and Informatics | 43 | $91,255 | N/A | $87,4644% above | N/A |
| Accounting and Related Services | 45 | $71,245 | $83,019 | $93,22811% below | $48,581 |
| International Business | Not available | $82,445 | N/A | $87,2996% below | N/A |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | 1,201 | $87,128 | $77,414 | $95,12719% below | $41,000 |
| Public Health | 39 | $74,490 | N/A | $63,94416% above | $49,172 |
| Human Resources Management and Services | 169 | $68,622 | N/A | $70,0502% below | $43,442 |
| Health and Medical Administrative Services | 203 | $75,302 | $66,886 | $89,92826% below | $41,000 |
| Educational/Instructional Media Design | 28 | $65,651 | N/A | $65,6190% above | N/A |
| Public Administration | 3 | N/A | $63,856 | $77,17517% below | N/A |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections | 65 | $56,865 | $57,836 | $66,26613% below | $41,030 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods | 2 | $50,071 | $56,444 | $58,8454% below | N/A |
| Special Education and Teaching | 61 | $50,960 | $51,086 | $63,05819% below | $40,456 |
| Human Services, General | 83 | $50,900 | N/A | $52,4503% below | $41,000 |
| Psychology, General | 247 | $48,437 | $50,601 | $67,14325% below | $41,000 |
| Education, General | 115 | $50,665 | $49,645 | $63,75422% below | $41,000 |
| Educational Administration and Supervision | 94 | $50,564 | $48,181 | $69,94431% below | $38,992 |
| Sociology | Not available | $46,608 | N/A | $57,15918% below | N/A |
| Program | Graduates | Earnings 1 yr | Earnings 4 yr | Field median | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | 11 | $112,020 | N/A | $102,3799% above | N/A |
| Human Resources Management and Services | 16 | $83,760 | $72,769 | $112,04735% below | $107,119 |
Careers linked to the programs Ashford University reports, highest national median pay first. Pay and outlook are BLS figures for the whole occupation, not for this college's graduates.
Healthcare practitioners
Master's degree
Via Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
Management
Bachelor's degree
Via Public Administration, Business Administration, Management and Operations and 3 more
Management
Bachelor's degree
Via Public Administration, Business Administration, Management and Operations and 3 more
Science
Master's degree
Via Psychology, General
Management
Bachelor's degree
Via Computer and Information Sciences, General, Computer Software and Media Applications and 3 more
Science
Doctoral or professional degree
Via Public Health
Every field of study, with the colleges that offer it and what graduates earn.
Programs A–ZVerified facts
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