# Graduate debt vs earnings: where borrowing is heaviest relative to pay

> Graduates' median federal loan debt as a share of what former students earn in a year, ten years after they enrolled, at four-year colleges in each state. U.S. College Scorecard data year 2025.

- Edition: Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition
- Page: https://www.collegesref.com/data/graduate-debt-vs-earnings-by-state
- Data (CSV): https://www.collegesref.com/data/graduate-debt-vs-earnings-by-state.csv
- Source reporting year: 2025
- Snapshot updated: November 15, 2026

## Key findings

1. At the median of 1,349 four-year public and private nonprofit colleges, graduates' median federal loan debt equals 36% of former students' median annual earnings ten years after enrolling ($21,500 against $59,860).
2. Borrowing is heaviest relative to pay in Alabama, where median debt is 49% of earnings across 23 colleges, and lightest in California, at 23% across 75 colleges.
3. The median ratio is 33% at public colleges and 38% at private nonprofit colleges.
4. At 106 colleges (8%) median graduate debt is 50% or more of a year's median earnings.

## State by state

Each figure is the median across a state's colleges; the share is the median of each college's own ratio.

| State | Colleges | Debt ÷ earnings | Median debt | Median earnings |
| --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| Alabama | 23 | 49% | $23,500 | $50,557 |
| South Carolina | 29 | 44% | $22,312 | $51,191 |
| Mississippi | 13 | 43% | $20,500 | $47,355 |
| North Carolina | 46 | 43% | $22,830 | $53,473 |
| Arkansas | 17 | 43% | $20,500 | $47,220 |
| Louisiana | 18 | 42% | $22,391 | $49,947 |
| Ohio | 60 | 42% | $23,125 | $57,717 |
| Georgia | 47 | 41% | $21,500 | $51,903 |
| Iowa | 24 | 41% | $23,911 | $58,810 |
| West Virginia | 17 | 40% | $21,146 | $49,503 |
| Kentucky | 20 | 40% | $20,799 | $51,552 |
| Virginia | 38 | 39% | $23,000 | $59,023 |
| Pennsylvania | 84 | 39% | $25,041 | $66,213 |
| South Dakota | 10 | 39% | $21,938 | $58,037 |
| Tennessee | 34 | 39% | $20,899 | $53,188 |
| Missouri | 34 | 38% | $20,700 | $53,206 |
| Indiana | 40 | 38% | $23,250 | $58,361 |
| Michigan | 36 | 38% | $23,667 | $59,877 |
| Wisconsin | 31 | 37% | $22,722 | $59,707 |
| Montana | 9 | 37% | $19,500 | $52,907 |
| Nebraska | 13 | 37% | $22,500 | $57,009 |
| Oklahoma | 22 | 37% | $19,624 | $50,230 |
| Maine | 15 | 36% | $21,269 | $57,989 |
| Kansas | 20 | 36% | $22,323 | $56,855 |
| New Hampshire | 11 | 35% | $25,078 | $64,588 |
| Texas | 71 | 35% | $20,050 | $57,299 |
| North Dakota | 8 | 35% | $21,131 | $58,798 |
| Massachusetts | 55 | 35% | $23,335 | $69,936 |
| Illinois | 45 | 34% | $20,976 | $61,717 |
| Colorado | 17 | 33% | $19,500 | $58,700 |
| Idaho | 7 | 33% | $19,250 | $57,623 |
| Oregon | 16 | 33% | $20,500 | $63,482 |
| District of Columbia | 8 | 33% | $22,688 | $75,495 |
| Maryland | 20 | 33% | $22,375 | $67,501 |
| Minnesota | 31 | 33% | $20,318 | $64,996 |
| Connecticut | 19 | 31% | $24,000 | $67,897 |
| Vermont | 7 | 31% | $24,429 | $66,136 |
| New Mexico | 7 | 31% | $13,892 | $44,198 |
| Rhode Island | 10 | 31% | $24,125 | $73,388 |
| New Jersey | 25 | 31% | $19,500 | $64,432 |
| Florida | 55 | 30% | $17,750 | $52,207 |
| Hawaii | 6 | 30% | $19,025 | $57,213 |
| New York | 105 | 29% | $21,250 | $68,324 |
| Arizona | 7 | 28% | $19,151 | $67,414 |
| Washington | 24 | 26% | $18,848 | $66,953 |
| Utah | 8 | 25% | $15,149 | $60,139 |
| California | 75 | 23% | $17,297 | $73,299 |
| **All reported colleges** | 1,349 | 36% | $21,500 | $59,860 |

Too few colleges to report (fewer than 5): Alaska (3), Delaware (4), Nevada (4), Wyoming (1).

## Heaviest debt relative to pay

| College | State and type | Median debt | Median earnings | Debt ÷ earnings |
| --- | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| [Allen University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/allen-university-42) | South Carolina · Private nonprofit | $29,000 | $32,754 | 89% |
| [Beacon College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/beacon-college-196) | Florida · Private nonprofit | $23,875 | $28,501 | 84% |
| [Everglades University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/everglades-university-930) | Florida · Private nonprofit | $40,874 | $48,760 | 84% |
| [Grambling State University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/grambling-state-university-1107) | Louisiana · Public | $34,500 | $41,535 | 83% |
| [Livingstone College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/livingstone-college-1513) | North Carolina · Private nonprofit | $31,000 | $38,502 | 81% |
| [Talladega College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/talladega-college-2672) | Alabama · Private nonprofit | $30,297 | $38,238 | 79% |
| [Benedict College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/benedict-college-214) | South Carolina · Private nonprofit | $27,000 | $36,562 | 74% |
| [Mississippi Valley State University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/mississippi-valley-state-university-1734) | Mississippi · Public | $27,000 | $36,621 | 74% |
| [Texas College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/texas-college-2702) | Texas · Private nonprofit | $26,500 | $36,030 | 74% |
| [Philander Smith College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/philander-smith-college-2105) | Arkansas · Private nonprofit | $29,375 | $40,195 | 73% |
| [Alabama State University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/alabama-state-university-19) | Alabama · Public | $28,197 | $40,585 | 70% |
| [Ohio Christian University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/ohio-christian-university-1995) | Ohio · Private nonprofit | $27,554 | $39,861 | 69% |
| [Johnson C Smith University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/johnson-c-smith-university-1347) | North Carolina · Private nonprofit | $30,750 | $44,849 | 69% |
| [Edward Waters College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/edward-waters-college-895) | Florida · Private nonprofit | $25,801 | $37,946 | 68% |
| [Alcorn State University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/alcorn-state-university-31) | Mississippi · Public | $27,500 | $40,721 | 68% |
| [Miles College-Alabama](https://www.collegesref.com/college/miles-college-alabama-1705) | Alabama · Private nonprofit | $25,500 | $38,127 | 67% |
| [Bethune-Cookman University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/bethune-cookman-university-243) | Florida · Private nonprofit | $28,025 | $42,476 | 66% |
| [Alabama A & M University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/alabama-a-m-university-18) | Alabama · Public | $27,204 | $41,266 | 66% |
| [Chowan University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/chowan-university-532) | North Carolina · Private nonprofit | $27,000 | $41,371 | 65% |
| [South Carolina State University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/south-carolina-state-university-2440) | South Carolina · Public | $26,964 | $41,531 | 65% |

## Lightest debt relative to pay

| College | State and type | Median debt | Median earnings | Debt ÷ earnings |
| --- | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| [California Institute of Technology CalTech](https://www.collegesref.com/college/california-institute-of-technology-caltech-356) | California · Private nonprofit | $7,500 | $166,642 | 5% |
| [United States Merchant Marine Academy](https://www.collegesref.com/college/united-states-merchant-marine-academy-2848) | New York · Public | $5,500 | $103,283 | 5% |
| [Williams College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/williams-college-3281) | Massachusetts · Private nonprofit | $8,000 | $95,954 | 8% |
| [Stanford University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/stanford-university-2589) | California · Private nonprofit | $10,750 | $125,340 | 9% |
| [Massachusetts Institute of Technology MIT](https://www.collegesref.com/college/massachusetts-institute-of-technology-mit-1615) | Massachusetts · Private nonprofit | $14,000 | $152,553 | 9% |
| [Princeton University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/princeton-university-2154) | New Jersey · Private nonprofit | $12,400 | $133,523 | 9% |
| [Yale University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/yale-university-3312) | Connecticut · Private nonprofit | $11,982 | $118,356 | 10% |
| [Claremont McKenna College CMC](https://www.collegesref.com/college/claremont-mckenna-college-cmc-557) | California · Private nonprofit | $13,450 | $127,532 | 11% |
| [Cornell University-New York](https://www.collegesref.com/college/cornell-university-new-york-710) | New York · Private nonprofit | $12,000 | $113,531 | 11% |
| [Wellesley College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/wellesley-college-3189) | Massachusetts · Private nonprofit | $9,788 | $90,458 | 11% |
| [Smith College-Massachusetts](https://www.collegesref.com/college/smith-college-massachusetts-2431) | Massachusetts · Private nonprofit | $8,000 | $69,936 | 11% |
| [Duke University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/duke-university-837) | North Carolina · Private nonprofit | $13,000 | $113,937 | 11% |
| [Berea College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/berea-college-221) | Kentucky · Private nonprofit | $5,500 | $48,071 | 11% |
| [Johns Hopkins University](https://www.collegesref.com/college/johns-hopkins-university-1344) | Maryland · Private nonprofit | $12,000 | $104,590 | 12% |
| [University of Chicago](https://www.collegesref.com/college/university-of-chicago-2895) | Illinois · Private nonprofit | $12,000 | $103,872 | 12% |
| [Dartmouth College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/dartmouth-college-769) | New Hampshire · Private nonprofit | $13,000 | $111,162 | 12% |
| [University of Maine at Presque Isle](https://www.collegesref.com/college/university-of-maine-at-presque-isle-2942) | Maine · Public | $5,714 | $47,161 | 12% |
| [Grinnell College](https://www.collegesref.com/college/grinnell-college-1125) | Iowa · Private nonprofit | $8,750 | $72,106 | 12% |
| [University of Pennsylvania UPENN](https://www.collegesref.com/college/university-of-pennsylvania-upenn-3009) | Pennsylvania · Private nonprofit | $15,000 | $121,687 | 12% |
| [University of California-Berkeley CAL](https://www.collegesref.com/college/university-of-california-berkeley-cal-2881) | California · Public | $12,416 | $100,212 | 12% |

## Methodology

- **Colleges counted.** Every college published on CollegesRef that is public or private nonprofit, in a four-year Carnegie class (doctoral, master's or baccalaureate), in the 50 states or D.C., with at least 500 undergraduates and both figures reported in the College Scorecard.
- **Exclusions.** For-profit colleges, two-year colleges, special-focus institutions, colleges with fewer undergraduates than the minimum, U.S. territories and colleges missing either figure are left out. Earnings figures without a federal reporting year are excluded.
- **Reporting threshold.** A state is reported only when at least 5 colleges qualify; states below it are listed under the table and still count in the national figures.
- **Ratio.** Median federal loan debt of students who completed (College Scorecard GRAD_DEBT_MDN) divided by former students' median earnings ten years after entry (MD_EARN_WNE_P10) at the same college.
- **Different groups.** Debt covers graduates who borrowed federal loans; earnings cover all federally aided students who enrolled, including those who did not finish. The ratio compares typical figures, not the same students.
- **Medians.** Each state figure is the median across its colleges, not weighted by enrollment.

## Frequently asked questions

### What does the debt-to-earnings share mean?

It is a college's median graduate debt divided by one year of its former students' median earnings. At the median of 1,349 colleges, debt equals 36% of a year's pay.

### Does it include private or parent loans?

No. Graduate debt in the College Scorecard covers federal student loans only; private loans and Parent PLUS loans are not counted.

### Why do states differ so much?

Prices, aid and local wages all differ. States with low-cost public systems and high regional pay show low ratios; states where many colleges charge more or graduates earn less show higher ones.

## Sources

- U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/data/
- IPEDS (National Center for Education Statistics): https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/
- The federal source data is a U.S. government work in the public domain (https://www.usa.gov/government-copyright).
- CollegesRef methodology: https://www.collegesref.com/methodology

## How to cite

CollegesRef, "Graduate debt vs earnings: where borrowing is heaviest relative to pay," analysis of U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard data (data year 2025), updated November 15, 2026. https://www.collegesref.com/data/graduate-debt-vs-earnings-by-state

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Source: CollegesRef, https://www.collegesref.com/data/graduate-debt-vs-earnings-by-state.