Introduction

Leveraging an array of data sources on student loans, repayment, and financial well-being, this report examines how student debt puts outsized and lasting financial burdens on Black and Latino families in California. Though California lawmakers rightly draw on national research on student debt and race, state-specific insights can be gleaned from national data sets. TCF’s state-level analyses here can help guide state policy that accounts for the distinct patterns of borrowing in California.

I draw from the best available sources of California-specific data on student debt to explain in depth what we know (and still do not know) about student debt in California. In my analysis I rely primarily on four sources:

To lesser extents, I also use data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and the American Community Survey (ACS). I also include a short analysis focusing on the relationship between education attainment and income, using data from the ACS.

This report is not a static PDF: you can toggle between different versions of charts and hover over graphs to reveal the exact statistics. The code used to produce this document and its charts and tables can be found at this GitHub repository. All data sets used in this report are publicly available, courtesy of the U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Federal Reserve, and the U.S. Census Bureau.

Consider each of the following when interpreting the data presented in this report:

Much of the data for this research comes from surveys, which enables us to disaggregate results by race and/or gender, revealing how these factors are associated with greater or lesser borrowing and other long-term outcomes. However, in many cases, the survey sample will not be large enough to provide a reliable estimate for a certain group. In the tables and graphs in this report, I have included all groups for which there is a sufficient sample. If you see that a group is not listed, I excluded it because the sample was not sufficient to produce a result for that group.

If you have any questions, please email me (Peter Granville) at granville@tcf.org.

Federal Student Aid Data Center

About the data

The FSA Data Center is a repository of data and statistics on federal student aid, including spreadsheets on student loans reported directly from the National Student Loan Data System. For this analysis I draw from two files from the FSA Data Center:

  • Quarterly reports on the federal student loan portfolio by borrower location, available here.
  • Quarterly reports on Direct Loan disbursements and borrowers at the level of the institution, disaggregated by loan program, available here.

For “per capita” measures of student debt and borrowing in Table 1, the population for comparison is the estimated total of all California adults aged 18 to 50. I estimate these population totals using American Community Survey data reflecting calendar year 2021, available here.

Please note that Ashford University, which is an institution headquartered in San Diego that has undergone changes in ownership and in name in recent years, has been re-coded in this analysis as a non-California institution. This affects Table 3 and Figure 1. I made this imputation because the institution has an exceptionally large non-California online enrollment. When included among California’s colleges, it dominates some aggregations of for-profit California colleges, both in this section and later in this document. Searching for “Ashford” in this document will direct you to any instances where it has been re-coded as a non-California institution.

Findings

Table 1 below shows how California compares to other states in its federal student loan debt per capita, its number of borrowers per capita, and its average federal student loan balance. California ranks well in the firs two measures due to a smaller percentage of its population holding debt than in other states. However, California’s borrowers exceed other states’ borrowers in their average balance. Californians who hold federal student loan debt averaged roughly $37,000 in June 2022.

Table 1

California’s rank on average debt measures
Measure 50-state median California value California rank
Federal student loan debt per adult (18-50) $10,568 $8,215 7
Federal student loan borrowers per 1000 adults 297.597 219.498 4
Average federal student loan balance $35,325 $37,426 36

Table 1: State Ranks

States ranked by number of federal student loan borrowers per 1,000 adults aged 18-50
States ranked by borrowers’ average federal student loan balance

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Federal Student Aid Data Center, spreadsheet on federal student loan portfolio by borrower location, available here, accessed December 2022.

Timeframe reflected: Figures in this table reflect the federal student loan portfolio as of June 30, 2022.

Notes: In the “California rank” column, a rank of 1 would indicate the lowest debt, borrowers, or average balance. The universe of borrowers is all those with an outstanding balance.

Table 2 below shows the size of California’s outstanding federal student loan debt. California has the most outstanding federal student loan debt ($142 billion) and borrowers (3.8 million) of any state, amounting to around 9 percent of the nationwide federal student loan portfolio. Given that California has a slightly higher average federal student loan balance than most states (see Table 1 above), California has a slightly greater share of nationwide debt than its share of nationwide borrowers.

Table 2
Size of California borrowers’ outstanding debt
Measure U.S. total California value California share
Total outstanding federal student loan debt $1,517,300,000,000 $146,100,000,000 9.6%
Total federal student loan borrowers 41,390,000 3,904,000 9.4%
Data Source and Notes

Data source: Federal Student Aid Data Center, spreadsheet on federal student loan portfolio by borrower location, available here, accessed December 2022.

Timeframe reflected: Figures in this table reflect the federal student loan portfolio as of June 30, 2022.

Notes: Dollar values in the “Total outstanding federal student loan debt” row are rounded to the nearest $100 million. Values in the “Total federal student loan borrowers” row are rounded to the nearest thousand.

For California’s borrowers to have the most debt likely comes as no surprise given that California has the nation’s largest populace. But it also means that California’s lawmakers can do more to change the course of the nation’s student debt crisis than virtually any other state’s leaders.

Table 3 below draws from the FSA Data Center’s quarterly data on disbursements, reflecting 2021-22.

Table 3
Share of loan dollars disbursed in 2021-22 by loan type, California vs. Rest of U.S.
State Subsidized Unsubsidized undergraduate Unsubsidized graduate Parent PLUS loans Grad PLUS
CA 16.1% 15.4% 32.6% 12.1% 23.8%
Rest of U.S. 19.4% 21.8% 32.0% 12.8% 13.9%
Share of loan undergraduate dollars disbursed in 2021-22 by loan type, California vs. Rest of U.S.
State Subsidized Unsubsidized undergraduate Parent PLUS loans
CA 36.9% 35.3% 27.8%
Rest of U.S. 35.9% 40.3% 23.8%
Table 3: All states
Share of loan dollars disbursed in 2021-22 by loan type
State Subsidized Unsubsidized undergraduate Unsubsidized graduate Parent PLUS loans Grad PLUS
AK 36.8% 46.4% 11.7% 3.2% 1.8%
AL 18.7% 20.1% 33.8% 17.9% 9.6%
AR 22.2% 25.3% 33.4% 10.7% 8.3%
AZ 24.0% 29.7% 31.1% 10.6% 4.6%
CA 16.1% 15.4% 32.6% 12.1% 23.8%
CO 20.3% 26.1% 28.2% 11.7% 13.6%
CT 22.0% 25.6% 24.2% 19.1% 9.0%
DC 12.8% 15.4% 37.1% 8.2% 26.6%
DE 25.2% 30.0% 19.6% 23.3% 1.8%
FL 20.9% 22.4% 32.1% 9.7% 14.9%
GA 20.4% 21.8% 30.9% 15.5% 11.4%
GU 40.5% 28.8% 26.7% 3.6% 0.4%
HI 18.7% 20.5% 24.8% 26.4% 9.6%
IA 20.0% 25.1% 31.6% 12.9% 10.5%
ID 29.4% 32.2% 22.8% 9.8% 5.8%
IL 16.2% 17.6% 35.6% 10.6% 20.0%
IN 20.8% 26.6% 31.3% 13.8% 7.5%
KS 22.2% 25.4% 28.5% 18.6% 5.3%
KY 19.7% 23.5% 38.0% 8.1% 10.7%
LA 21.7% 24.6% 28.5% 13.0% 12.2%
MA 16.6% 16.9% 35.2% 13.2% 18.1%
MD 17.4% 19.8% 32.4% 15.1% 15.3%
ME 20.3% 24.3% 27.3% 11.5% 16.6%
MI 20.4% 22.7% 29.6% 14.7% 12.5%
MN 15.0% 20.6% 50.2% 3.5% 10.7%
MO 16.5% 18.7% 38.5% 9.4% 16.9%
MS 20.8% 21.7% 35.1% 12.3% 10.1%
MT 21.7% 26.8% 17.9% 26.0% 7.6%
NC 20.6% 21.8% 29.1% 14.7% 13.7%
ND 23.2% 36.5% 31.8% 5.8% 2.8%
NE 16.9% 20.7% 32.7% 12.3% 17.4%
NH 27.7% 30.9% 32.2% 5.6% 3.7%
NJ 24.1% 24.3% 29.0% 13.6% 9.1%
NM 23.1% 23.5% 44.5% 3.0% 5.8%
NV 19.9% 19.7% 29.7% 10.3% 20.5%
NY 15.8% 15.8% 30.6% 16.5% 21.3%
OH 21.6% 25.6% 27.7% 15.1% 10.1%
OK 21.4% 24.2% 28.2% 18.6% 7.6%
OR 18.6% 20.5% 26.9% 18.3% 15.6%
PA 19.6% 20.3% 28.6% 18.2% 13.3%
PR 19.9% 16.3% 55.0% 0.4% 8.4%
Rest of U.S. 25.9% 34.8% 32.9% 0.6% 5.9%
RI 24.7% 25.0% 19.6% 24.1% 6.6%
SC 21.4% 24.0% 25.1% 20.1% 9.5%
SD 27.4% 36.0% 21.1% 10.2% 5.3%
TN 17.3% 19.4% 34.4% 10.4% 18.6%
TX 23.4% 24.2% 31.6% 13.4% 7.4%
UT 25.8% 35.1% 32.4% 2.3% 4.4%
VA 17.5% 19.1% 37.5% 13.9% 12.0%
VI 31.5% 25.7% 33.6% 3.4% 5.7%
VT 18.6% 20.3% 27.1% 18.3% 15.7%
WA 16.4% 19.3% 31.9% 16.7% 15.6%
WI 23.9% 29.4% 28.2% 10.2% 8.3%
WV 19.4% 24.6% 33.6% 10.5% 11.8%
WY 23.2% 31.9% 17.9% 21.9% 5.1%
Nationwide 19.1% 21.2% 32.1% 12.8% 14.9%
Data Source and Notes

Data source: Federal Student Aid Data Center, spreadsheet on Direct Loan volume for Q4 2021-22, “Award year summary” tab, available here, accessed April 2023.

Timeframe reflected: Figures in this table reflect the 2021-22 award year.

Notes: Here I use the data on loan disbursements, not loan originations. Note that Ashford University has been recoded as a non-California institution for the purpose of this analysis.

Comparing California to the rest of the U.S., we find that:

  • California’s federal student loan dollars are less concentrated in the Subsidized loan program and the Unsubsidized undergraduate loan program.
  • California’s federal student loan dollars are slightly more concentrated in the Unsubsidized graduate loan program and slightly less concentrated in the Parent PLUS loan program.
  • California’s federal student loan dollars are much more concentrated in the Grad PLUS loan program, at 19.4% versus 11.0% across the rest of the country.

A major public policy emphasis for state lawmakers, in California as anywhere, is the affordability of undergraduate programs. One sign of California’s success in that respect is the lower amount of undergraduate borrowing compared to the rest of the country. (Of course, even small loan balances can strain a borrower’s financial life.) The significantly greater use of Grad PLUS, however, is a cause for concern.

Figure 1 below shows that the average Grad PLUS and Parent PLUS loans in California are higher than in the rest of the U.S.

Figure 1
Data Source and Notes

Data source: Federal Student Aid Data Center, spreadsheet on Direct Loan volume for Q4 2021-22, “Award year summary” tab, available here, accessed April 2023.

Timeframe reflected: Figures in this graph reflect the 2021-22 award year.

Notes: Here I use the data on loan disbursements, not loan originations. These averages do not include students who receive no loans. Only four-year institutions are included. Ashford University has been recoded as a non-California institution for the purpose of this analysis.

Across all three institutional control categories, California exceeds the rest of the U.S. in the average Parent PLUS loan and the average Grad PLUS loan. Unlike Stafford loans, Parent PLUS and Grad PLUS are both uncapped, meaning a borrower can take out as much as they would like any year. At California nonprofit and for-profit four-years, the average Parent PLUS loan per year is north of $20,000, and the average Grad PLUS loan per year is around $30,000. In both cases, the averages are lower at public institutions.

Not every graduate student borrows Grad PLUS, and not every parent who sends their child to college borrows Parent PLUS. However, high averages mean that the lasting gap between those who do borrow and those who do not is greater. These programs are two driving reasons why California has a higher average student loan balance than most other states.

As for Stafford loans for undergraduates, California hews closely to the rest of the U.S. in average annual borrowing, across all levels of institutional control.

National Postsecondary Student Aid Study

About the data

The statistics in the previous section are all based on state-level and institution-level data. For the most robust information on the relationship between student loan borrowing and race in California, we need student-level data. In the absence of a national student-level data set, we use survey data from the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS).

NPSAS is the largest survey of U.S. college students that has a primary focus on financial aid and college costs. The study has generally been conducted every four years, with the latest published data set reflecting the 2015-16 year (NPSAS:16). With every NPSAS release, separate data sets examine undergraduate and graduate students.

For this analysis I use NPSAS:16 and focus the universe on in-state students. This enables us to compare California’s in-state students with those across the country.

It is worth noting here that an edition of NPSAS known as NPSAS-AC (NPSAS Administrative Collection) was released by NCES earlier this year and allows for state-representative samples at the public four-year and community college sector level. In NPSAS-AC, California is one of dozens of states a researcher could examine. By contrast, in NPSAS:16, California is one of the only states large enough to support state-specific queries.

For information on another state’s public four-year students or community college students, we would turn to NPSAS-AC. However, estimates on California’s students are actually more robust in NPSAS:16, and I found that NPSAS:16 allowed for more breakdowns across subgroups than NPSAS-AC did. For that reason, I use NPSAS:16 in this section. However, I would recommend NPSAS-AC for examinations of almost any other state, as well as any analyses that seek to rank states based on a certain metric.

NPSAS data are accessed using the National Center on Education Statistics’ (NCES) Datalab tool. Every query has a unique table retrieval number that can be used by any user to run the query in Datalab. These table retrieval numbers are included in the “Data Source and Notes” tabs of every chart.

Findings

This research is primarily interested in examining how factors like the racial wealth gap shape the lasting burdens of student debt among California borrowers. Figure 2 below compares average undergraduate borrowing by racial group among California’s students compared to the U.S. overall, and below that, the corresponding shares of students who borrow any loans.

It is important to look at both the average loan amounts and the percentages who borrow. In California, undergraduates who do borrow must borrow more than undergraduate borrowers nationwide. However, a smaller share of families borrow in California than in the nation overall.

Within California, 28 percent of Black undergraduates receive student loans, the most of any group, and this rises to 31 percent for Black women specifically.

Figure 2: Undergraduate Loans by Race
Figure 2: Undergraduate Loans by Race and Gender
Data Source and Notes

Data source: National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, Undergraduate. Datalab interface available here using table retrieval numbers opspco and njviui for “Figure 2: Race” and ztmgmm, vzreir, tqbbxv, and pqftzn for “Figure 2: Race and Gender.”

Timeframe reflected: Figures in this graph reflect students enrolled in the 2015-16 academic year.

Notes: Due to limitations of NPSAS:16, the data in Figure 2 only apply to in-state students. The averages here do not include those who did not borrow any loans. These measures include all student loans, including federal student loans (including Parent PLUS), private loans, state loans, and institutional loans.

Figure 3 shows that key differences at the graduate level. The average annual loans are larger than at the undergraduate level, and California more sharply exceeds the nation in the average loan. In addition, the share of California students who borrow is much higher at the graduate level than the undergraduate level.

Figure 3: Average Graduate Loans by Race
Figure 3: Average Graduate Loans by Race and Gender (U.S. only)
Data Source and Notes

Data source: National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, Undergraduate. Datalab interface available here using table retrieval numbers avflfm and lhkurg for “Figure 3: Race” and aotdhl, lyrbbf, ukuclj, and minyim for “Figure 3: Race and Gender.”

Timeframe reflected: Figures in this graph reflect students enrolled in the 2015-16 academic year.

Notes: Due to limitations of NPSAS:16, the data in Figure 3 only apply to in-state students. For “Figure 3: Race and Gender,” only the U.S. is used due to insufficient sample size for many subgroups in California. The averages here do not include those who did not borrow any loans. These measures include all student loans, including federal loans, private loans, state loans, and institutional loans.

Differences by group within California are also concerning. More than 80 percent of Black California graduate students and 62 percent of Latino/a California graduate students must borrow student loans, compared to 44 percent of white California graduate students. Although the overall share who borrow is roughly the same in California as in the U.S., Black students are the exception, borrowing loans at a rate that is 13 percentage points higher.

At the graduate level in California, Asian students borrow the greatest average amount, exceeding $30,000 per year, which is slightly above the national average for Asian graduate students. However, Asian graduate students borrow the least frequently of these four groups, in California and in the U.S. overall. (Recall that this is limited to in-state students, so international enrollment is not a factor.)

The NPSAS sample size is not sufficient to add a breakdown by gender and still compare California to the U.S., so we provide the breakdown by race and gender for the U.S. only. Within all groups, graduate students who are women more frequently borrow, but their male peers who borrow tend to borrow slightly more.

Among California graduate students, the NPSAS sample is not sufficient for a complete breakdown by program level. For context, Figure 4 below uses the national sample in NPSAS:16 to measure borrowing in the graduate program level for which there is sufficient data: namely, master’s programs and professional doctorates (e.g. JDs, MDs). Unlike with other charts in this section, these are not limited to in-state students, since we use the national sample here.

Figure 4: Average Graduate Loans by Program and Race
Figure 4: Average Graduate Loans by Program, Race, and Gender
Data Source and Notes

Data source: National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, Graduate. Datalab interface available here using table retrieval numbers ibxxlt and zlasyt for “Figure 4: Race” and table retrieval numbers gouiaq, hxgkel, iuyjsr, ajghcg for “Figure 4: Race and Gender.”

Timeframe reflected: Figures in this graph reflect students enrolled in the 2015-16 academic year.

Notes: The averages here do not include those who did not borrow federal loans. These measures include all student loans, including federal student loans, private loans, state loans, and institutional loans. In contrast to other charts in this section, Figure 4 is not limited to in-state students, since it does not have California-only statistics.

Black and Latino/a students in master’s programs and professional doctorate programs, as well as those who identify with more than one race, borrow more frequently than do their white or Asian peers. There is less variation when it comes to their average annual loan amount.

At the professional doctorate level, gender does not appear to play a large role. However, it is clear that female master’s students borrow more frequently than male master’s students. Combining the trends by race and gender, we observe that Black women in master’s programs borrow almost threefold more often than do white men in master’s programs. (Again, recall that this reflects the U.S. overall and not California specifically.)

Figure 5 returns to the undergraduate level and considers how much debt undergraduate students earn by the time they are about to earn their bachelor’s degree. Specifically, I filter for those who are listed as a “graduating senior from a bachelor’s degree program in 2015-16.” Due to data limitations in NPSAS, Figure 5 does not include Parent PLUS loans.

Figure 5: Average Undergraduate Loans at Graduation by Race
Figure 5: Average Undergraduate Loans at Graduation by Race and Gender
Data Source and Notes

Data source: National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, Undergraduate. Datalab interface available here using table retrieval numbers rcefsb and admfpj for “Figure 5: Race” and table retrieval number eggovn, gnvptv, pnfkhv, and elhvny for “Figure 5: Race and Gender (U.S. only)”.

Timeframe reflected: Figures in this graph reflect students enrolled in the 2015-16 academic year.

Notes: Due to limitations of NPSAS:16, the data in Figure 5 only apply to in-state students. The averages here do not include those with no cumulative loans. These measures include all student loans, including federal student loans (but not including Parent PLUS), private loans, state loans, and institutional loans.

Here, California students fare the same or better than students nationwide, in terms of the share who borrow and the cumulative loans of those who do. However, equity concerns cut across both California and the nation overall.

Nearly 85 percent of Black California undergraduates borrow student loans by graduation, which exceeds most other groups in the state by a concerning margin. (An estimated 80 percent of California Pacific Islander students borrow.) Notably, all groups are above 50 percent in California as in the U.S. overall.

The trend of pronounced borrowing among women, and especially Black women, extends here as well. Roughly 95 percent of Black California undergraduate women borrow by the time they graduate, on par with the national rate but well above all other groups.

NPSAS allows us to disaggregate by ethnicity (to a limited extent) for two racial groups, Hispanic and Asian. No individual Asian ethnic group stands out from the rest along these measures, although Indian, Korean, Filipino, and Mixed Asian California undergraduates all average more in annual loans than other groups and exceed the corresponding national averages. Fewer distinct groups are available in the Hispanic variable; California’s Puerto Rican undergraduates show the highest average loans among those who borrow.

Figure 6: Average Undergraduate Loans by Asian Ethnicity
Figure 6: Average Undergraduate Loans by Hispanic Ethnicity
Data Source and Notes

Data source: National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, Undergraduate. Datalab interface available here using table retrieval numbers famipl and dzalav.

Timeframe reflected: Figures in this graph reflect students enrolled in the 2015-16 academic year.

Notes: No other racial groups besides Hispanic and Asian have breakouts by ethnicity in NPSAS. Due to limitations of NPSAS:16, the data in Figure 6 only apply to in-state students. The averages here do not include those who did not borrow any loans. These measures include all student loans, including federal student loans (including Parent PLUS), private loans, state loans, and institutional loans.

Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking

About the data

The Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking (SHED) is a survey of U.S. households conducted annually by the U.S. Federal Reserve. It asks a battery of questions about income and earnings, savings and financial well-being, and education, including student loans. The respondents are the heads of households and the weights can be used to create estimates of the U.S. adult population.

The public SHED data files contain information from about 12,000 respondents every year, many of whom are in California and many of whom have student loans. For the analyses in this section, I pooled SHED data from each of the survey years between 2015 and 2021. The result has a sufficient sample for us to examine California student loan borrowers and breakdowns by race. All numeric responses, such as total student loan debt or total savings, are grouped into categories; therefore, I could not make any adjustments to account for inflation.

Adding more and more filters to the sample reduces the confidence in our estimates. As much as it would be good to know how California student loan borrowers working in the nursing field compared to other California student loan borrowers, the resulting sample size would simply be too small for us to put stock in the results. This is why the charts in this section disaggregate by race and by state of residence but generally do not cut the data further than that.

Some survey questions were not asked every year between 2015 and 2021, and as a result, some subgroups included here have very small samples. I include in the “Data Source and Notes” tab for every figure in this section the number of respondents whose data lead to the statistics shown, broken down by group.

Please note when interpreting this data that SHED does not distinguish between federal student loans and private student loans.

I selected the variables that seemed most likely to help tell the story of how student loan borrowers in California are faring. If you would like to see analysis on variables I did not include, please email me. More information about the SHED data can be found here.

Findings

Figure 7 examines which respondents have student loan debt or other debt used for their educations. Overall, 13.8 percent of California respondents did, slightly below the 15.8 percent share for the rest of the U.S.

Significantly more than other groups, Black respondents in California and the rest of the U.S. alike reported having education debt (26.3 percent). This is well above the share for white California respondents, just 9.6 percent.

Figure 7

Responses to “Do you currently have student loan debt or owe any money used to pay for your own education?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 7 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 7
Group State Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA 1260
Black, Non-Hispanic CA 450
Hispanic CA 2005
White, Non-Hispanic CA 4039
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 3836
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 6550
Hispanic Rest of U.S. 6155
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 46943

Figure 8 examines the type of debt that borrowers have. For the vast majority of borrowers, at least some of that debt is in the form of a student loan.

SHED also asks about home equity loans that respondents took out to support their education. These are low percentages overall, but it is notable that Hispanic borrowers report this the most often.

The share of respondents who say they hold credit card debt for their education is concerning, since credit card debt is the highest-interest of the three types of debt examined here. Around 40 percent of California borrowers have credit card debt for their education, which is 10 percentage points higher than Black borrowers nationwide and well above the share for white borrowers (16.7 percent). Hispanic borrowers are next-highest, with 27 percent of California borrowers holding credit card debt.

Figure 8: Student loans

Responses to “Think about the money you currently owe for your own education. Is the money you owe for that education a student loan?”

Figure 8: Home equity

Responses to “Think about the money you currently owe for your own education. Is the money you owe for that education home equity?

Figure 8: Credit card debt

Responses to “Think about the money you currently owe for your own education. Is the money you owe for that education credit card debt?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 8 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the tables below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 8: Student loans
Group State Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA 169
Black, Non-Hispanic CA 112
Hispanic CA 352
White, Non-Hispanic CA 336
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 758
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 1792
Hispanic Rest of U.S. 1201
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 5583
N size by group for Figure 8: Home equity
Group State Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA 163
Black, Non-Hispanic CA 107
Hispanic CA 340
White, Non-Hispanic CA 323
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 729
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 1713
Hispanic Rest of U.S. 1170
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 5448
N size by group for Figure 8: Credit card debt
Group State Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA 163
Black, Non-Hispanic CA 107
Hispanic CA 340
White, Non-Hispanic CA 323
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 729
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 1713
Hispanic Rest of U.S. 1170
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 5448

SHED also asks about the total amount borrowers owe and reports responses in eleven categories. Hispanic borrowers in California are most likely to carry a balance of $15,000 or below, while Black borrowers in California are the most likely to carry a balance of $100,000 or more.

Compared to borrowers in the rest of the U.S., white California borrowers are more likely to report higher amounts of education debt. Hispanic California borrowers and California borrowers of another non-Hispanic race are more likely to report lower amounts of education debt compared to borrowers in the rest of the U.S.

Figure 9: CA borrowers

Responses to “Thinking specifically about the money that you owe for your own education, please tell the total amount that you currently owe on these loans.”

Figure 9: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Responses to “Thinking specifically about the money that you owe for your own education, please tell the total amount that you currently owe on these loans.”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 9 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 9
Group State Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA 152
Black, Non-Hispanic CA 108
Hispanic CA 337
White, Non-Hispanic CA 322
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 728
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 1692
Hispanic Rest of U.S. 1153
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 5397

According to Figure 10, the median California borrower across all groups must make a monthly payment between $100 and $199. California borrowers who are white report higher monthly payments on their education loans.

For Figure 10, I excluded survey responses from 2020 and 2021 due to the federal student loan payment pause.

Figure 10: CA borrowers

Responses to “Approximately how much is the total monthly payment that you are required to make on the loans from your education?”

Figure 10: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Responses to “Approximately how much is the total monthly payment that you are required to make on the loans from your education?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 10 are NA, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019. Survey responses collected in 2020 and 2021 are not included due to the federal student loan repayment pause.

Notes: Due to smaller sample size, interpret results with caution. See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 10
Group State Survey respondents
Black, Non-Hispanic CA 64
Hispanic CA 207
Other, Non-Hispanic CA 91
White, Non-Hispanic CA 221
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 1028
Hispanic Rest of U.S. 696
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 448
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 3328

Whether or not a borrower is behind on their education loans is one indication of their financial well-being and ability to repay their loans. Figure 11 shows that, compared to the rest of the U.S., more borrowers in California are behind or in collections, at 21.5 percent versus 17.3 percent nationwide. Almost one-third (32.6 percent) of Hispanic California borrowers report being behind, followed by Black California borrowers (26.7 percent). These are double the share for white California borrowers (13.4 percent).

For Figure 11, I excluded survey responses from 2020 and 2021 due to the federal student loan payment pause and forbearance period.

Figure 11

Responses to “Are you behind on payments or in collections for one or more of the loans from your own education?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 11 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019. Survey responses collected in 2020 and 2021 are not included due to the federal student loan repayment pause.

Notes: Due to smaller sample size, interpret results with caution. See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 11
Group State Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA 112
Black, Non-Hispanic CA 81
Hispanic CA 240
White, Non-Hispanic CA 235
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 508
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 1197
Hispanic Rest of U.S. 804
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 3678

A SHED survey respondent can also owe debt that was used for their spouse or partner’s education, or for the education of their child or grandchild. Figure 12 shows this with one tab for each type of debt.

Overall, about 6 percent of respondents had debt for their spouse, in California and the rest of the U.S. alike. The highest share is among Black California respondents at 11 percent, well above all other groups.

Around 7.5 percent of respondents had debt for a child or grandchild’s education, both in California and the rest of the U.S. Hispanic California respondents reported having this debt most often at 10.5 percent.

Figure 12: Debt for spouse’s or partner’s education

Responses to “Do you currently owe any money used to pay for your [spouse/ partner]’s education?”

Figure 12: Debt for child’s or grandchild’s education

Responses to “Do you currently owe any money used to pay for your child or grandchild’s education?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 12 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: Figure 12 includes all respondents, not just those who have student debt for their own education. “Figure 12: Debt for spouse’s or partner’s education” does not include survey respondents without a spouse or partner. “Figure 12: Debt for child or grandchild’s education” does not include survey respondents without children or grandchildren. See the tables below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 12: Debt for spouse’s or partner’s education
Group State Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA 781
Black, Non-Hispanic CA 212
Hispanic CA 1180
White, Non-Hispanic CA 2527
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 2314
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 2853
Hispanic Rest of U.S. 3626
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 31264
N size by group for Figure 12: Debt for child’s or grandchild’s education
Group State Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA 768
Black, Non-Hispanic CA 313
Hispanic CA 1255
White, Non-Hispanic CA 2788
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 2485
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 4556
Hispanic Rest of U.S. 3943
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 33630

For Figures 13 onward, we focus on respondents who had any student loan debt, be it debt for the respondent’s own education, their spouse or partner’s, or their child or grandchild’s. These graphs will distinguish between borrowers and non-borrowers, except when the variable we are examining is only answered by student loan borrowers (e.g. their confidence in paying their next student loan bill). Most graphs will use borrowers in the rest of the U.S., as well as non-borrowers in California, for comparison against California student loan borrowers.

Figure 13 examines the educational attainment of borrowers. In California, Hispanic borrowers (53.6 percent) and Black borrowers (43.5 percent) are the most likely to have less than a college degree. For most groups, California’s student loan borrowers have a higher educational attainment than those in the rest of the U.S. Predictably, student loan borrowers in California and the rest of the U.S. alike have higher educational attainment than California’s non-borrowers.

Roughly 12 percent of California’s student loan borrowers have only a high school degree, GED, or less. This is most commonly true of Hispanic (22 percent) and Black (10 percent) student loan borrowers. When we discuss issues affecting student loan borrowers, it is important to remember that some borrowers who hold debt for a child’s or spouse’s education never went to college themselves at all and do not reap the economic rewards of that education.

This figure also includes a special tab for parents, examining the education levels of parents who hold student loan debt for their child’s education. Respondents who are not parents are not included in that tab.

Figure 13: CA borrowers

Responses to “What is the highest level of school you have completed or the highest degree you have received?”

Figure 13: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Responses to “What is the highest level of school you have completed or the highest degree you have received?”

Figure 13: CA non-borrowers

Responses to “What is the highest level of school you have completed or the highest degree you have received?”

Figure 13: Parents

Responses to “What is the highest level of school you have completed or the highest degree you have received?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 13 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 13
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 1070
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 330
Hispanic CA No 1731
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 3643
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 197
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 121
Hispanic CA Yes 387
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 412
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 820
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1937
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1362
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 6970
N size by group for Figure 13: Parents
State Parent-borrower Survey respondents
CA No 4783
CA Yes 341
Rest of U.S. Yes 3254

Figure 14 shows a concerning pattern in home ownership among California student loan borrowers. Fewer than 1 in 4 Black California student loan borrowers owns a home, which is well below all other groups in California or the rest of the U.S., borrowers and non-borrowers alike.

In general, student loan borrowers own a home less often than do non-borrowers. In California, 41.3 percent of borrowers own their home compared to 57.0 percent of non-borrowers. The younger average age of student loan borrowers may be a factor, although people may be less inclined to buy a home when they hold outstanding student loans.

Figure 14: CA borrowers

Responses to “Do you own your home?”

Figure 14: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Responses to “Do you own your home?”

Figure 14: CA non-borrowers

Responses to “Do you own your home?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 14 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 14
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 1066
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 329
Hispanic CA No 1725
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 3635
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 197
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 120
Hispanic CA Yes 387
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 412
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 817
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1936
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1360
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 6959

Long-term credit card debt is a major factor in the financial lives of many student loan borrowers. Figure 8 showed that almost a quarter of Californians with education debt see that debt take the form of credit card debt, most especially for Black borrowers.

Figure 15 shows that 62.3 percent of California student loan borrowers have outstanding unpaid credit card debt. Black (80.1 percent) and Hispanic (70.3 percent) California student loan borrowers show the highest rates of holding this high-interest, month-over-month debt. When credit card debt hangs over student loan borrowers, it puts yet another obstacle between them and student loan repayment.

Figure 15

Responses to “Do you currently have any outstanding unpaid credit card debt?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 15 are 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 15
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 980
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 287
Hispanic CA No 1457
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 3290
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 179
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 107
Hispanic CA Yes 348
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 376
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 722
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1719
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1217
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 6411

Figure 16 further explores California student loan borrowers’ difficulty escaping credit card debt: overall, 40.9 percent say that they carry an unpaid balance “Most or all of the time,” which is almost identical to the rate for student loan borrowers in the rest of the U.S. However, this rises to a staggering 62.1 percent for Black California student loan borrowers. The gap between Black borrowers and white borrowers is much smaller (4.8 percentage points) in the rest of the U.S. than in California (26.6 percentage points).

The Black-white gap is mirrored in the rest of the California population (17.5 percentage points) but is still not as extreme as it is for student loan borrowers in the state.

Figure 16 also contains tabs for (1) parents and (2) borrowers with graduate degrees and student loans.

Figure 16: CA borrowers

Responses to “In the past 12 months, how frequently have you carried an unpaid balance on one or more of your credit cards?”

Figure 16: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Responses to “In the past 12 months, how frequently have you carried an unpaid balance on one or more of your credit cards?”

Figure 16: CA non-borrowers

Responses to “In the past 12 months, how frequently have you carried an unpaid balance on one or more of your credit cards?”

Figure 16: Parents

Responses to “In the past 12 months, how frequently have you carried an unpaid balance on one or more of your credit cards?”

Figure 16: Graduate degee holders

Responses to “In the past 12 months, how frequently have you carried an unpaid balance on one or more of your credit cards?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 16 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 16
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 960
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 265
Hispanic CA No 1273
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 3298
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 177
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 102
Hispanic CA Yes 301
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 368
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 633
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1415
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1081
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 5936
N size by group for Figure 16: Parents
State Parent-borrower Survey respondents
CA No 4308
CA Yes 312
Rest of U.S. Yes 3007
N size by group for Figure 16: Graduate borrowers
State Survey respondents
CA 242
Rest of U.S. 2113

Figure 17 asks about total household savings and investments. Most California student loan borrowers of all groups report having less than $50,000 in total savings and investments, but especially Black California borrowers (78.1 percent) and Hispanic California borrowers (74.1 percent). White California borrowers are almost three times as likely (28.3 percent) to have $100,000 in household wealth compared to Black California borrowers (10.2 percent).

The distribution of California non-borrowers is much less skewed towards the low-wealth end of the spectrum.

Figure 17: CA borrowers

Responses to “What is the approximate total amount of your household’s savings and investments?”

Figure 17: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Responses to “What is the approximate total amount of your household’s savings and investments?”

Figure 17: CA non-borrowers

Responses to “What is the approximate total amount of your household’s savings and investments?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 17 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 17
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 853
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 268
Hispanic CA No 1267
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 3037
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 165
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 91
Hispanic CA Yes 268
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 351
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 627
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1514
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 971
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 5620

Figure 18 shows the distribution of California student loan borrowers by income. We observe that:

  • The median California borrower earns between $50,000 and $75,000.
  • The median white California borrower earns between $75,000 and $100,000.
  • The median Hispanic California borrower earns between $40,000 and $50,000.
  • The median Black California borrower earns between $50,000 and $75,000.
  • The median California borrower of another race earns between $75,000 and $100,000.

In other words, Hispanic borrowers in California skew the most towards the low-income side, followed next by Black borrowers in California.

Comparing borrowers in California to borrowers outside California shows interesting trends. Black student loan borrowers across the country skew more low-income than Black borrowers in California, and same for the “Other, non-Hispanic” group. Overall, California has more high-income student loan borrowers (32.4 percent earning $100,000 or more) than student loan borrowers in the rest of the country (26.7 percent).

Figure 18: CA borrowers

Responses to “Which of the following categories best describes the total income that you received from all sources, before taxes and deductions, in the past 12 months?”

Figure 18: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Responses to “Which of the following categories best describes the total income that you received from all sources, before taxes and deductions, in the past 12 months?”

Figure 18: CA non-borrowers

Responses to “Which of the following categories best describes the total income that you received from all sources, before taxes and deductions, in the past 12 months?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 18 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 18
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 1052
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 327
Hispanic CA No 1720
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 3606
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 197
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 118
Hispanic CA Yes 386
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 411
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 817
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1928
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1361
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 6944

Figure 19 examines the first of some questions about subjective experiences. Asked how well they are managing financially, 25.1 percent of all California student loan borrowers reported “living comfortably.” This falls to 9.1 percent among Black California student loan borrowers. Among student loan borrowers outside California, the Black-white gap is much smaller (7.6 percentage points) than among borrowers in California (24.3 percentage points).

On the opposite end of the spectrum, between 9 and 12 percent of all white, Hispanic, and Black California borrowers report “Finding it difficult to get by.”

Across all groups, non-borrowers in California report greater financial well-being than student loan borrowers.

Figure 19 also contains tabs for (1) parents and (2) borrowers with graduate degrees and student loans.

Figure 19: CA borrowers

Responses to “Overall, which one of the following best describes how well you are managing financially these days?”

Figure 19: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Responses to “Overall, which one of the following best describes how well you are managing financially these days?”

Figure 19: CA non-borrowers

Responses to “Overall, which one of the following best describes how well you are managing financially these days?”

Figure 19: Parents

Responses to “Overall, which one of the following best describes how well you are managing financially these days?”

Figure 19: Graduate borrowers

Responses to “Overall, which one of the following best describes how well you are managing financially these days?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 19 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 19
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 1068
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 330
Hispanic CA No 1730
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 3640
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 197
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 120
Hispanic CA Yes 386
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 412
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 820
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1935
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1361
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 6963
N size by group for Figure 19: Parents
State Parent-borrower Survey respondents
CA No 4779
CA Yes 340
Rest of U.S. Yes 3248
N size by group for Figure 19: Graduate borrowers
State Survey respondents
CA 5119
Rest of U.S. 44577

Figure 20 looks at how respondents think they doing compared to how their parents were doing at their age. In general, student loan borrowers feel positively about their financial standing compared to their parents at the same age, with more than half feeling better off.

Compared to California student loan borrowers, borrowers in the rest of the U.S. appear slightly less satisfied, as do California non-borrowers. In both cases, the differentials are not large.

It is difficult to read very much into the responses to this question. A respondent can feel that they are relatively better off than their parents while still dissatisfied with their circumstances, and a respondent from a wealthy background may observe some downward mobility compared to their parents without necessarily experiencing hardship. At the same time, the lack of major differences by race is interesting given the sizable gaps we have observed in previous figures.

Figure 20: CA borrowers

Responses to “Think of your parents when they were your age. Would you say you (and your family) are better, the same, or worse off financially than they were?”

Figure 20: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Responses to “Think of your parents when they were your age. Would you say you (and your family) are better, the same, or worse off financially than they were?”

Figure 20: CA non-borrowers

Responses to “Think of your parents when they were your age. Would you say you (and your family) are better, the same, or worse off financially than they were?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 20 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 20
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 1068
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 329
Hispanic CA No 1726
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 3626
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 197
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 121
Hispanic CA Yes 384
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 412
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 817
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1929
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1358
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 6960

Figure 21 displays where respondents think their credit score falls. The disparities by race are stark: only 32.3 percent of Black California student loan borrowers think their credit score is “excellent” or “good,” compared to 75.1 percent of white California student loan borrowers. This Black-white gap (42.8 percentage points) is larger than it is for student loan borrowers in the rest of the U.S. (25.6 percentage points).

Student loan borrowers in California report having worse credit scores than non-borrowers in California. Looking within California, the disparity between Black borrowers and Black non-borrowers is especially strong: 63.9 percent of Black California non-borrowers say they think their credit score is “excellent” or “good,” almost double the 32.3 percent among Black California borrowers. In other words, for Black Californians, having student loans is associated with halving the likelihood of having a good or excellent credit score.

Figure 21: CA borrowers

Responses to “Where do you think your credit score falls?”

Figure 21: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Responses to “Where do you think your credit score falls?”

Figure 21: CA Non-borrowers

Responses to “Where do you think your credit score falls?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 21 are 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 21
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 485
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 146
Hispanic CA No 603
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 1415
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 83
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 49
Hispanic CA Yes 131
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 163
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 315
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 784
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 507
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 2896

Figure 22 examines borrower’s reported ability to pay off their bills in full in the month they were surveyed. About 6 in 10 Black California borrowers and Hispanic California borrowers report being able to fully pay their monthly bills, versus 7 in 10 among California borrowers overall. By comparison, a slightly higher percentage of student loan borrowers outside California report being able to pay their bills in full.

Figure 22 also contains tabs for (1) parents and (2) borrowers with graduate degrees and student loans.

Figure 22: CA borrowers

Responses to “Which best describes your ability to pay all of your bills in full this month?”

Figure 22: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Responses to “Which best describes your ability to pay all of your bills in full this month?”

Figure 22: CA non-borrowers

Responses to “Which best describes your ability to pay all of your bills in full this month?”

Figure 22: Parents

Responses to “Which best describes your ability to pay all of your bills in full this month?”

Figure 22: Graduate borrowers

Responses to “Which best describes your ability to pay all of your bills in full this month?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 22 are 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 22
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 993
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 297
Hispanic CA No 1603
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 3338
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 186
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 112
Hispanic CA Yes 362
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 385
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 758
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1793
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1273
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 6585
N size by group for Figure 22: Parents
State Parent-borrower Survey respondents
CA No 4444
CA Yes 321
Rest of U.S. Yes 2973
N size by group for Figure 22: Graduate borrowera
State Survey respondents
CA 239
Rest of U.S. 2104

In the first tab of Figure 23, we examine the same question but for monthly student loan bills specifically. Overall, California borrowers (27.2 percent) appear more likely to be able to pay their next student loan bill than those outside California (34.2 percent). The differences across groups are small among California borrowers, but it is actually white California borrowers (33.6 percent) who report being unable to fully pay their next student loan bill the most often, and it is Hispanic California borrowers (22.2 percent) who report that response the least often.

The next tab applies the same question to rent or mortgage bills. Once again, the differences across groups are small, but Hispanic California borrowers report being unable to pay their next rent or mortgage bill the most often (24.3 percent) and white California borrowers the least often (11.6 percent).

In the next tab, the shares who say that they cannot pay their next credit card bill are much higher than for student loan bills and rent or mortgage bills. More than half (57.2 percent) of California student loan borrowers say that they cannot, though this is not significantly higher than the rates for student loan borrowers outside California (51.9 percent) and California non-borrowers (45.5 percent).

For “Figure 23: Ability to pay student loan bill,” I excluded survey responses from 2020 and 2021 due to the federal student loan payment pause and forbearance period. The sample sizes are smaller for Figure 23 than for others, so interpret with a greater degree of caution.

Figure 23: Ability to pay student loan bill

Responses to “Are you expecting to be unable to pay or only make a partial payment on your student loan bill this month?”

Figure 23: Ability to pay rent or mortgage bill

Responses to “Are you expecting to be unable to pay or only make a partial payment on each of the following bills this month?”

Figure 23: Ability to pay credit card bill

Responses to

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for “Figure 23: Ability to pay student loan bill” are 2017, 2018, and 2019. Survey years 2020 and 2021 not included in “Figure 23: Ability to pay student loan bill” due to the federal student loan repayment pause.

The survey years included for “Figure 23: Ability to pay rent or mortgage bill” and “Figure 23: Ability to pay credit card bill” are 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: Each of these analyses are limited to those who have each of these bills. Interpret results for subgroups with small sample sizes with caution. See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 23: Ability to pay student loan bill
Group State Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA 92
Black, Non-Hispanic CA 54
Hispanic CA 298
White, Non-Hispanic CA 274
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 343
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 987
Hispanic Rest of U.S. 779
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 3198
N size by group for Figure 23: Ability to pay rent or mortgage bill
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 95
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 53
Hispanic CA No 346
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 326
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 35
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 36
Hispanic CA Yes 106
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 76
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 185
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 578
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 323
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1082
N size by group for Figure 23: Ability to pay credit card bill
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 95
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 53
Hispanic CA No 346
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 329
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 35
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 36
Hispanic CA Yes 105
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 77
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 184
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 576
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 323
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1083

Figure 24 displays the results of the first of a series of questions related to how much respondents’ financial circumstances would be affected by a $400 emergency expense. Overall, about 1 in 4 California borrowers (22.9 percent) would be unable to fully pay their monthly student loan bill if they had to pay a sudden $400 expense to pay, with white California borrowers (12.7 percent) showing a greater ability to withstand the financial emergency than other groups.

The California sample sizes for “Black, Non-Hispanic” and “Other, Non-Hispanic” are very small for Figure 24. I include the graph for the sake of transparency but recommend interpreting these results with great caution.

Figure 24

Responses to “Would you likely skip paying, or make only a partial payment on, your student loan bill if you had a $400 emergency expense that you had to pay?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 24 are 2017, 2018, and 2019. Survey years 2020 and 2021 not included due to the federal student loan repayment pause.

Notes: This analysis is limited to those who have student loans. See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 24
Group State Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA 49
Black, Non-Hispanic CA 31
Hispanic CA 141
White, Non-Hispanic CA 156
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 242
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 505
Hispanic Rest of U.S. 501
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. 2161

Figure 25 shows results for a question about how a sudden $400 expense would affect respondents’ ability to pay other bills (besides the emergency expense). As with Figure 24, white California borrowers show the least likelihood of being unable fully pay their other bills (7.3 percent), with higher likelihoods for Black (19.5 percent) and Hispanic (24.2 percent) California borrowers.

The results are not very different for non-borrowers in California. In general, student loan borrowers outside California (19.3 percent) would have more difficulty paying their monthly loans after the emergency expense than student loan borrowers in California (16.5 percent).

Figure 25: CA borrowers

Responses to “How would a $400 emergency expense that you had to pay impact your ability to pay your other bills this month?”

Figure 25: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Responses to “How would a $400 emergency expense that you had to pay impact your ability to pay your other bills this month?”

Figure 25: CA non-borrowers

Responses to “How would a $400 emergency expense that you had to pay impact your ability to pay your other bills this month?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 25 are 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 25
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 810
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 225
Hispanic CA No 1104
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 2635
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 128
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 66
Hispanic CA Yes 217
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 268
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 500
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1040
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 838
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 4823

Figure 26 is the first of two figures that considers the likelihood that respondents would be approved if they applied for a line of credit. Asked about their confidence that they would be approved for a new credit card, about a quarter (25.3 percent) of California borrowers say that they are “not confident,” rising to about 4 in 10 (39.1 percent) among Black California borrowers. The majority of white California borrowers (58.1 percent) and those of another race (59.9 percent) say they are “very confident.”

The results are not very different for student loan borrowers outside California. By and large, non-borrowers in California are much more likely to feel confident about being approved for a credit card than student loan borrowers in California.

Figure 26: CA borrowers

Responses to “If you were to apply for a credit card today, how confident are you that you would be approved?”

Figure 26: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Responses to “If you were to apply for a credit card today, how confident are you that you would be approved?”

Figure 26: CA non-borrowers

Responses to “If you were to apply for a credit card today, how confident are you that you would be approved?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 26 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 26
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 1002
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 311
Hispanic CA No 1519
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 3505
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 189
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 119
Hispanic CA Yes 370
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 397
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 782
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1830
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1316
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 6767

Figure 27 shows how frequently respondents say that they were turned down for credit in the prior 12 months. In general, student loan borrowers appear more likely to report being turned down than non-borrowers. Almost 1 in 3 student loan borrowers in California (32.1 percent) and the rest of the U.S. (31.6 percent) say they were turned down, compared to fewer than 1 in 5 among California non-borrowers (18.6 percent).

In general, Black (53.5 percent in California) and Hispanic (37.6 percent in California) student loan borrowers are the most likely to say that they were turned down.

Figure 27

Responses to “In the past 12 months, have you or your spouse/partner been turned down for credit?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 27 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 27
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 363
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 130
Hispanic CA No 583
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 1181
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 108
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 58
Hispanic CA Yes 194
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 240
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 452
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1023
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 750
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 3792

Figure 28 contains six tabs corresponding to different public benefits households can claim:

  • Social Security, including old age and disability insurance
  • Cash assistance, including SSI, TANF, or cash from a welfare program
  • The Earned Income Tax Credit
  • Food benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps)
  • Housing assistance from a government program
  • Free or reduced-price school lunch

Whether it is considered good or bad to have higher rates along these measures is in the eye of the beholder. Taking cash assistance as an example, it is a good thing for the finances of a household in need to receive that benefit, but it is a bad sign of the household’s finances if they are eligible. Therefore, I do not comment on the results here but leave it to the reader to explore.

The sample for “Figure 28: Free or reduced price lunch” is limited to those with children under 18. This cuts the sample size, and as a result, the sample size for for California student loan borrowers in that tab is quite small. Interpret those results with some caution.

Figure 28: Social Security

Responses to “In the past 12 months, have you [and/or your spouse/ parnter] received Social Security (including old age and DI)?”

Figure 28: Cash assistance

Responses to “In the past 12 months, have you [and/or your spouse/ parnter] received Supplemental Security Income (SSI), TANF, or cash assistance from a welfare program?”

Figure 28: EITC

Responses to “In the past 12 months, have you [and/or your spouse/ parnter] received the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)?”

Figure 28: SNAP

Responses to “In the past 12 months, have you [and/or your spouse/ parnter] received Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP or food stamps)?”

Figure 28: Housing assistance

Responses to “In the past 12 months, have you [and/or your spouse/ parnter] received housing assistance from a government program?”

Figure 28: Free or reduced price lunch

Responses to “In the past 12 months, have you [and/or your spouse/ parnter] received free or reduced price school lunches?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for “Figure 28: Social Security” are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021. The survey years included for all other versions of Figure 28 are 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the tables below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 28: Social Security
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 1059
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 327
Hispanic CA No 1715
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 3616
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 195
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 119
Hispanic CA Yes 383
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 411
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 809
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1916
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1350
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 6939
N size by group for Figure 28: Cash assistance
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 901
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 277
Hispanic CA No 1452
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 2969
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 162
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 100
Hispanic CA Yes 320
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 344
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 680
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1628
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1160
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 5912
N size by group for Figure 28: EITC
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 906
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 278
Hispanic CA No 1463
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 2971
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 163
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 101
Hispanic CA Yes 323
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 346
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 688
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1631
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1164
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 5922
N size by group for Figure 28: SNAP
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 906
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 278
Hispanic CA No 1462
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 2974
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 163
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 102
Hispanic CA Yes 323
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 346
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 688
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1634
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1165
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 5922
N size by group for Figure 28: Housing Assistance
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 907
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 278
Hispanic CA No 1465
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 2976
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 163
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 102
Hispanic CA Yes 323
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 346
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 688
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1631
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1165
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 5921
N size by group for Figure 28: FRPL
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 226
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 60
Hispanic CA No 463
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 421
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 56
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 43
Hispanic CA Yes 107
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 89
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 224
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 575
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 408
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1721

Methodologically, Figure 29 requires a little more explaining than other figures in this section. The data shown in Figure 29 are based on two questions in the SHED survey:

  • The first question is, “Have you set aside emergency or rainy day funds that would cover your expenses for 3 months in case of sickness, job loss, economic downturn, or other emergencies?”
  • The second question is only asked to those who answered “No” to the prior question. The second question is, “If you were to lose your main source of income (for example, job or government benefits), could you cover your expenses for 3 months by borrowing money, using savings, or selling assets?”

I combined the responses to these two questions into one variable that takes three values: “I can cover three months of expenses with my rainy day funds,” “I can cover three months of expenses by another means besides rainy day funds,” and “I cannot replace the income needed for three months of expenses.”

About 3 in 4 non-borrowers in California (72.9 percent) report being confident that they can replace income for three months through some means, compared to about 6 in 10 student loan borrowers in California (59.6 percent). In California, Black borrowers report having a sufficient rainy day fund much less often (24.0 percent) than do white borrowers (41.6 percent).

Figure 29: CA borrowers

Ability to cover three months of expenses using rainy day funds or another source

Figure 29: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Ability to cover three months of expenses using rainy day funds or another source

Figure 29: CA non-borrowers

Ability to cover three months of expenses using rainy day funds or another source

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 29 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the tables below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 29
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 1065
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 325
Hispanic CA No 1721
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 3631
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 197
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 121
Hispanic CA Yes 385
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 412
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 815
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1927
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1359
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 6938

Figure 30 continues on the theme of how the respondents would financially manage during an unexpected emergency. There are eight tabs, each representing to a different way of paying a $400 sudden expense. They highly vary in terms of interest rates and the effort required to access that financing:

  • Using cash or savings is the simplest and likely has the least significant long-term consequences, followed next by charging the expense to a credit card and paying it off in full that same month.
  • Letting the credit card expense roll over, or using a bank loan, means there will be accumulated interest and some more effort required.
  • Borrowing from a friend could be low-risk depending on the circumstance, but it could also add to the risk that the expense causes someone’s interpersonal relationships to suffer long-term.
  • Selling one’s items requires time and energy, and depending on what is sold, it could mean parting with necessities (such as a car or an amenity) or items with genuine sentimental value.
  • The typical payday loan has an APR that is more than 40 times the typical credit card interest rate.
  • Finally, a respondent could say that they simply cannot pay the $400 emergency expense.

A respondent can select more than one method of finance: for example, a household might borrow from a friend and use a payday loan. In other words, the sum of the bars for a group adds up to more than 100 percent.

Around 40 to 50 percent of all groups would pay in cash. White borrowers (41.7 percent among California borrowers) and those in the “Other, Non-Hispanic” (49.5 percent among California borrowers) are the most likely to pay with a credit card and not let the balance roll over. Black and Hispanic respondents are virtually the only respondents to say they would use a payday loan, although it it less than 8 percent across state and borrower categories. Lastly, Black (18.9 percent among California borrowers) and Hispanic (17.6 percent among California borrowers) respondents are more likely to say that they cannot cover the expense.

In general, the margins between California student loan borrowers, borrowers in the rest of the U.S., and California non-borrowers are all rather small.

Figure 30: Pay $400 with cash or savings

Responses to “Suppose that you have an emergency expense that costs $400. Based on your current financial situation, how would you pay for this expense? [With the money currently in my checking/savings account or with cash]”

Figure 30: Pay $400 with credit card (no interest)

Responses to “Suppose that you have an emergency expense that costs $400. Based on your current financial situation, how would you pay for this expense? [Put it on my credit card and pay it off in full at the next statement]”

Figure 30: Pay $400 with credit card (with interest)

Responses to “Suppose that you have an emergency expense that costs $400. Based on your current financial situation, how would you pay for this expense? [Put it on my credit card and pay it off over time]”

Figure 30: Pay $400 with a bank loan

Responses to “Suppose that you have an emergency expense that costs $400. Based on your current financial situation, how would you pay for this expense? [Using money from a bank loan or line of credit]”

Figure 30: Pay $400 by borrowing from a friend

Responses to “Suppose that you have an emergency expense that costs $400. Based on your current financial situation, how would you pay for this expense? [By borrowing from a friend or family member]”

Figure 30: Pay $400 with a payday loan

Responses to “Suppose that you have an emergency expense that costs $400. Based on your current financial situation, how would you pay for this expense? [Using a payday loan, deposit advance, or overdraft]”

Figure 30: Pay $400 by selling something

Responses to “Suppose that you have an emergency expense that costs $400. Based on your current financial situation, how would you pay for this expense? [By selling something]”

Figure 30: Unable to pay $400

Responses to “Suppose that you have an emergency expense that costs $400. Based on your current financial situation, how would you pay for this expense? [I wouldn’t be able to pay for the expense right now]”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 30 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: Responses are not exclusive to one another. For an example, a respondent could say that they would sell belongings and use a payday loan. Because of this, groups’ bars cannot be stacked on top of each other in one chart and are instead presented here in a series of charts. See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 30
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 1070
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 328
Hispanic CA No 1728
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 3635
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 197
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 121
Hispanic CA Yes 386
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 412
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 818
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1932
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1361
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 6961

Figures 31 and 32 consider how respondents think about their own education. Figure 31 shows respondents’ opinions about whether they think the financial benefits or costs of their most recent educational program are larger.

The most common response is that the costs and benefits are the same. Overall, non-borrowers in California are less likely to say that they find the costs greater than the benefits (21.7 percent) compared to California student loan borrowers (38.0 percent).

Among California borrowers, Black respondents appear more likely than other groups to say that the costs are “much larger.” However, the sample sizes for California student loan borrowers in the “Black, Non-Hispanic” and “Other, Non-Hispanic” categories are very small, meaning those rows of results should be interpreted with caution.

Figure 31: CA borrowers

Responses to “Overall, how would you say the lifetime financial benefits of your [current/most recent] educational program compare to its financial costs?”

Figure 31: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Responses to “Overall, how would you say the lifetime financial benefits of your [current/most recent] educational program compare to its financial costs?”

Figure 31: CA non-borrowers

Responses to “Overall, how would you say the lifetime financial benefits of your [current/most recent] educational program compare to its financial costs?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 31 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: See the table below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 31
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 200
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 110
Hispanic CA No 588
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 897
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 39
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 40
Hispanic CA Yes 116
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 78
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 194
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 653
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 456
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1684

Figure 32 examines what respondents say they would do differently if they could go back and make their educational decisions again. Around half of California student loan borrowers say they would choose a different field, and the same share say they would choose a different school. Student loan borrowers outside California responded similarly.

Only 1 in 8 California student loan borrowers said they would have completed less education if they could do it over again, and almost 3 in 4 said that they would complete more education.

As with Figure 31, the sample sizes for California student loan borrowers in the “Black, Non-Hispanic” and “Other, Non-Hispanic” categories are very small, meaning those rows of results should be interpreted with caution.

Figure 32: Different field

Responses to “If you could go back and make your education decisions again, would you have chosen a different field of study?”

Figure 32: Different school

Responses to “If you could go back and make your education decisions again, would you have attended a different school?”

Figure 32: Less education

Responses to “If you could go back and make your education decisions again, would have not attended college or completed less education?”

Figure 32: More education

Responses to “If you could go back and make your education decisions again, would you have completed more education?”

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 32 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: Interpret the “California student loan borrowers” results with caution due to small sample size. See the tables below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 32: Different field
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 164
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 103
Hispanic CA No 488
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 836
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 27
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 30
Hispanic CA Yes 81
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 59
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 136
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 485
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 357
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1251
N size by group for Figure 32: Different school
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 163
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 103
Hispanic CA No 486
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 833
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 27
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 29
Hispanic CA Yes 81
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 59
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 136
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 484
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 356
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1251
N size by group for Figure 32: Less education
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 162
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 102
Hispanic CA No 482
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 826
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 27
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 29
Hispanic CA Yes 81
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 59
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 135
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 483
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 354
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1239
N size by group for Figure 32: More education
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 164
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 103
Hispanic CA No 495
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 856
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 27
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 30
Hispanic CA Yes 83
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 59
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 136
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 486
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 361
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1256

Figures 33, 34, and 35 provide some breakdowns of respondents using basic information that is relevant for the discussion of student loans. Figure 33 shows the breakdown by gender. The gender variable uses here only provides two values, male and female.

A slight majority of student loan borrowers are female, closer to two-thirds among Black student loan borrowers.

Figure 33: Gender

Share who are male:

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 33 are 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: The gender variable, as collected and reported by SHED, only has “male” and “female” values. See the tables below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 33
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 1070
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 330
Hispanic CA No 1731
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 3643
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 197
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 121
Hispanic CA Yes 387
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 412
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 820
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1937
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1362
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 6970

In Figure 34, we see a breakdown by the level of higher education institution that the respondents attended. Around three-quarters of all student loan borrowers attended four-year institutions, compared to about 5 in 8 non-borrowers in California. Among California borrowers, white respondents (82.6 percent) were more likely to have attended a four-year college than Black (70.4 percent) or Hispanic (66.6 percent) respondents.

Those who did not attend any college are not included in this figure.

Figure 34: CA borrowers

Level of higher education institution

Figure 34: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Level of higher education institution

Figure 34: CA non-borrowers

Level of higher education institution

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 34 are 2015, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: This analysis only includes those who have college experience. See the tables below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 34
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 612
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 172
Hispanic CA No 724
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 1788
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 130
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 84
Hispanic CA Yes 221
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 252
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 525
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1274
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 844
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 4535

Figure 35 shows the distribution of respondents by institutional control. Student loan borrowers in California and the rest of the U.S. are more likely to have attended a private institution than non-borrowers.

For-profit colleges are particularly represented among student loan borrowers, especially for borrowers of color. Black (21.7 percent) and Hispanic (25.1 percent) California student loan borrowers attended for-profit colleges more frequently than white California student loan borrowers (11.4 percent). By comparison, just 6 percent of non-borrowers in California attended a for-profit college.

Those who did not attend any college are not included in this figure.

Figure 35: CA borrowers

Control of higher education institution

Figure 35: Rest of U.S. borrowers

Control of higher education institution

Figure 35: CA non-borrowers

Control of higher education institution

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here.

Timeframe reflected: The survey years included for Figure 35 are 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Notes: This analysis only includes those who have college experience. See the tables below for the survey respondent sample size by subgroup.
N size by group for Figure 34
Group State Student loan borrower Survey respondents
Other, Non-Hispanic CA No 697
Black, Non-Hispanic CA No 203
Hispanic CA No 877
White, Non-Hispanic CA No 2363
Other, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 151
Black, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 102
Hispanic CA Yes 274
White, Non-Hispanic CA Yes 333
Other, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 639
Black, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1520
Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 1030
White, Non-Hispanic Rest of U.S. Yes 5654

College Scorecard

About the data

We now turn away from survey data and back towards administrative data, this time from the College Scorecard. The College Scorecard is a dataset published and regularly updated by the U.S. Department of Education that combines information on debt and borrowers from the National Student Loan Data System, data on earnings from the U.S. Treasury, institutions’ self-reported data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IEPDS), and more.

Scorecard is used as a consumer-facing tool to help families make informed decisions about college, highlighting the post-graduation outcomes of students who attend. The public-facing website contains just a subset of the wealth of variables in its downloadable data files. Scorecard is divided into two datasets, one at the institution level and another at the program level.

For our analysis of student loan debt in California here, I focus on certain variables from Scorecard that tell us about how debt is borrowed and repaid.

A key limitation of Scorecard for our purposes here is that it does not have many breakdowns by students’ race, which is a downstream consequence of the FAFSA’s lack of a question about racial identity. Legislative changes to the FAFSA are slated to add that question, but as for now, the best way to consider the racial impacts of institutions’ metrics of debt and earnings is to link in IPEDS data on enrollment and completions by race. I will explain below how and when I do this.

The Department of Education reports debt repayment data in such a way that the federal student loan payment pause and forbearance period do not distort the results. Although data on total outstanding loan balances are current, default rates and repayment variables reflect pre-pandemic borrower outcomes. The Biden Administration’s announcement of student loan debt cancellation similarly has no bearing on the data.

Findings

Table 4 shows institutions in California by their total outstanding loan debt, total borrowers with outstanding debt, and average debt balance. I included the top 100 by the average outstanding debt amount. There is one tab for each of three loan programs: Stafford, Parent PLUS, and Grad PLUS.

Some of the top institutions by the average Stafford debt are health sciences schools and law schools. There are only two public institutions in the top 75, and neither confers undergraduate degrees.

The institutions with the largest average Parent PLUS loan debt balances include art colleges and selective universities. It is not until 33 rows down the table that the first public institution appears. While a Parent PLUS debt balance of $50,000 or more may be manageable for a very wealthy family, it can spell long-term financial harship for those with less resources.

The top institutions by average outstanding Grad PLUS debt include many of the same as the top for average Stafford balance: the top 10 for both includes Palo Alto University, Five Branches University, and Touro University California, to name a few.

Table 4: Stafford debt

Top 100 California institutions by average outstanding Stafford balance
Institution name Control of institution Total outstanding Stafford loan debt Total Stafford loan borrowers Average outstanding Stafford debt
Life Chiropractic College West Non-profit $463,530,000 3,560 $130,200
Western University of Health Sciences Non-profit $1,465,447,000 12,240 $119,700
The Wright Institute Non-profit $149,248,000 1,310 $114,300
Southern California University of Health Sciences Non-profit $527,940,000 4,770 $110,700
Touro University California Non-profit $830,509,000 8,410 $98,800
Palo Alto University Non-profit $259,552,000 2,660 $97,500
Marshall B Ketchum University Non-profit $170,318,000 1,750 $97,200
Five Branches University For-profit $82,985,000 920 $90,600
Yo San University of Traditional Chinese Medicine Non-profit $57,925,000 690 $83,800
Fielding Graduate University Non-profit $317,320,000 3,870 $81,900
Alliant International University-San Diego For-profit $1,208,153,000 14,800 $81,600
University of California-San Francisco Public $471,915,000 6,720 $70,200
Loma Linda University Non-profit $1,135,047,000 16,360 $69,400
Sofia University For-profit $89,498,000 1,330 $67,500
John F. Kennedy University Non-profit $405,147,000 6,010 $67,400
Pacifica Graduate Institute For-profit $205,005,000 3,060 $67,000
California Institute of Integral Studies Non-profit $367,350,000 5,590 $65,700
Emperor’s College of Traditional Oriental Medicine For-profit $62,447,000 970 $64,300
California Western School of Law Non-profit $351,054,000 5,490 $63,900
Saybrook University Non-profit $155,795,000 2,460 $63,300
Pacific College of Health and Science For-profit $380,438,000 6,140 $61,900
Claremont Graduate University Non-profit $377,122,000 6,160 $61,200
Thomas Jefferson School of Law Non-profit $319,679,000 5,350 $59,700
The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Los Angeles Non-profit $1,413,054,000 23,910 $59,100
San Joaquin College of Law Non-profit $68,170,000 1,200 $57,000
Fuller Theological Seminary Non-profit $304,041,000 5,360 $56,700
Southwestern Law School Non-profit $338,985,000 6,040 $56,100
American Film Institute Conservatory Non-profit $71,632,000 1,290 $55,700
Samuel Merritt University Non-profit $411,515,000 7,650 $53,800
South Baylo University Non-profit $61,510,000 1,150 $53,300
Pacific School of Religion Non-profit $33,728,000 660 $51,300
Claremont School of Theology Non-profit $41,610,000 840 $49,500
University of California-Hastings College of Law Public $247,993,000 5,050 $49,100
Southern California Institute of Architecture Non-profit $73,517,000 1,520 $48,500
Golden Gate University-San Francisco Non-profit $445,812,000 9,770 $45,600
University of Southern California Non-profit $4,153,059,000 91,130 $45,600
Pacific Oaks College Non-profit $279,540,000 6,140 $45,600
University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences For-profit $412,448,000 9,140 $45,100
University of the Pacific Non-profit $1,013,043,000 22,480 $45,100
Keck Graduate Institute Non-profit $50,782,000 1,150 $44,000
The Santa Barbara and Ventura Colleges of Law at Ventura Non-profit $23,362,000 530 $43,700
Newschool of Architecture and Design For-profit $83,410,000 2,060 $40,500
Pepperdine University Non-profit $1,147,364,000 28,360 $40,500
University of West Los Angeles For-profit $60,243,000 1,530 $39,500
Charles R Drew University of Medicine and Science Non-profit $132,003,000 3,510 $37,600
University of La Verne Non-profit $1,166,422,000 31,700 $36,800
American Jewish University Non-profit $23,910,000 660 $36,400
Humphreys University-Stockton and Modesto Campuses Non-profit $182,055,000 5,020 $36,300
California Institute of the Arts Non-profit $203,315,000 5,650 $36,000
Notre Dame de Namur University Non-profit $205,288,000 5,950 $34,500
Art Center College of Design Non-profit $186,835,000 5,730 $32,600
Azusa Pacific University Non-profit $1,293,070,000 40,440 $32,000
Holy Names University Non-profit $154,485,000 4,950 $31,200
National University Non-profit $2,601,824,000 83,380 $31,200
Brandman University Non-profit $780,452,000 25,160 $31,000
San Francisco Conservatory of Music Non-profit $39,854,000 1,300 $30,700
Whittier College Non-profit $303,707,000 9,890 $30,700
California Baptist University Non-profit $1,004,644,000 32,730 $30,700
Loyola Marymount University Non-profit $771,231,000 25,180 $30,600
Woodbury University Non-profit $174,003,000 5,750 $30,300
University of San Francisco Non-profit $919,186,000 30,690 $30,000
San Francisco Art Institute Non-profit $88,233,000 2,950 $29,900
Academy of Art University For-profit $1,428,742,000 48,010 $29,800
Chapman University Non-profit $992,096,000 33,560 $29,600
University of San Diego Non-profit $678,870,000 23,170 $29,300
California College of the Arts Non-profit $155,492,000 5,430 $28,600
Mills College Non-profit $175,686,000 6,380 $27,600
Touro University Worldwide Non-profit $100,452,000 3,650 $27,500
Santa Clara University Non-profit $371,665,000 13,510 $27,500
Northcentral University Non-profit $1,060,572,000 38,650 $27,400
University of Redlands Non-profit $537,993,000 19,680 $27,300
Dominican University of California Non-profit $178,589,000 6,570 $27,200
Design Institute of San Diego For-profit $31,830,000 1,180 $27,100
Point Loma Nazarene University Non-profit $367,303,000 13,580 $27,100
American University of Health Sciences For-profit $31,615,000 1,180 $26,900
Mount Saint Mary’s University Non-profit $372,344,000 13,970 $26,700
South Coast College For-profit $62,386,000 2,390 $26,100
California Lutheran University Non-profit $326,493,000 12,610 $25,900
SAE Expression College For-profit $75,153,000 2,930 $25,600
Saint Mary’s College of California Non-profit $312,148,000 12,240 $25,500
Fresno Pacific University Non-profit $385,775,000 15,160 $25,400
Hope International University Non-profit $149,024,000 5,860 $25,400
United States University For-profit $45,205,000 1,830 $24,700
Stanford University Non-profit $230,561,000 9,440 $24,400
Concordia University-Irvine Non-profit $353,980,000 14,520 $24,400
West Coast University-Los Angeles For-profit $790,941,000 32,500 $24,300
University of California-Los Angeles Public $1,881,849,000 77,490 $24,300
La Sierra University Non-profit $230,739,000 9,750 $23,700
Biola University Non-profit $337,316,000 14,300 $23,600
California State University-San Bernardino Public $1,175,920,000 49,960 $23,500
California College San Diego Non-profit $163,911,000 7,000 $23,400
Otis College of Art and Design Non-profit $92,190,000 3,960 $23,300
Epic Bible College Non-profit $18,449,000 800 $22,900
Ashford University For-profit $7,290,839,000 335,960 $21,700
Laguna College of Art and Design Non-profit $37,397,000 1,740 $21,400
New York Film Academy For-profit $59,199,000 2,780 $21,300
Vanguard University of Southern California Non-profit $192,866,000 9,260 $20,800
Cogswell University of Silicon Valley For-profit $36,808,000 1,770 $20,800
Simpson University Non-profit $112,695,000 5,460 $20,600
San Francisco State University Public $1,454,911,000 71,430 $20,400

Table 4: Parent PLUS debt

Top 100 California institutions by average outstanding Parent PLUS balance
Institution name Control of institution Total outstanding Parent PLUS loan debt Total Parent PLUS loan borrowers Average outstanding Parent PLUS debt
Art Center College of Design Non-profit $53,590,000 720 $74,400
California Institute of the Arts Non-profit $41,449,000 610 $67,700
Santa Clara University Non-profit $82,133,000 1,220 $67,100
Loyola Marymount University Non-profit $203,642,000 3,130 $65,100
University of San Diego Non-profit $221,883,000 3,460 $64,200
University of Southern California Non-profit $379,764,000 6,240 $60,800
Pepperdine University Non-profit $131,540,000 2,240 $58,700
Saint Mary’s College of California Non-profit $98,391,000 1,700 $57,900
New York Film Academy For-profit $47,706,000 840 $56,500
University of the Pacific Non-profit $144,678,000 2,720 $53,200
West Coast University-Los Angeles For-profit $245,286,000 4,620 $53,000
Dominican University of California Non-profit $50,737,000 970 $52,500
University of San Francisco Non-profit $143,504,000 2,780 $51,600
Stanford University Non-profit $31,279,000 610 $51,600
Otis College of Art and Design Non-profit $46,878,000 930 $50,500
Academy of Art University For-profit $296,076,000 6,070 $48,800
Biola University Non-profit $105,992,000 2,210 $48,000
Westmont College Non-profit $30,654,000 650 $47,200
Point Loma Nazarene University Non-profit $72,811,000 1,570 $46,500
Chapman University Non-profit $188,988,000 4,200 $45,000
California Baptist University Non-profit $159,155,000 3,730 $42,700
Concordia University-Irvine Non-profit $40,052,000 950 $42,200
University of Redlands Non-profit $56,611,000 1,350 $42,000
Notre Dame de Namur University Non-profit $29,284,000 730 $40,000
FIDM-Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising-Los Angeles For-profit $308,508,000 7,800 $39,600
Columbia College Hollywood Non-profit $34,603,000 890 $39,000
SAE Expression College For-profit $20,088,000 520 $38,900
Woodbury University Non-profit $40,134,000 1,050 $38,400
Whittier College Non-profit $42,411,000 1,120 $38,000
California Lutheran University Non-profit $80,701,000 2,150 $37,500
Menlo College Non-profit $19,582,000 520 $37,300
Musicians Institute For-profit $52,900,000 1,440 $36,600
University of California-Los Angeles Public $278,616,000 7,760 $35,900
University of California-Berkeley Public $195,622,000 5,480 $35,700
University of La Verne Non-profit $80,979,000 2,320 $34,900
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo Public $244,954,000 7,090 $34,500
Cogswell University of Silicon Valley For-profit $17,997,000 530 $34,200
Azusa Pacific University Non-profit $123,693,000 3,770 $32,800
Vanguard University of Southern California Non-profit $37,573,000 1,160 $32,400
California College of the Arts Non-profit $25,175,000 780 $32,400
University of California-Santa Cruz Public $184,818,000 5,850 $31,600
Holy Names University Non-profit $15,747,000 500 $31,400
University of California-Santa Barbara Public $227,754,000 7,330 $31,100
Marymount California University Non-profit $19,453,000 650 $29,900
San Diego State University Public $218,029,000 7,300 $29,900
University of California-Davis Public $194,059,000 6,510 $29,800
University of California-San Diego Public $139,333,000 4,820 $28,900
California State University Maritime Academy Public $15,874,000 550 $28,900
La Sierra University Non-profit $41,450,000 1,450 $28,600
Los Angeles Film School For-profit $84,763,000 2,960 $28,600
University of California-Irvine Public $257,729,000 9,150 $28,200
Pacific Union College Non-profit $17,328,000 620 $28,100
Mount Saint Mary’s University Non-profit $58,970,000 2,170 $27,200
William Jessup University Non-profit $13,684,000 510 $26,600
Sonoma State University Public $79,101,000 3,090 $25,600
California State University-Channel Islands Public $40,159,000 1,590 $25,300
San Francisco State University Public $184,370,000 7,410 $24,900
University of California-Merced Public $52,433,000 2,150 $24,400
University of California-Riverside Public $169,814,000 7,070 $24,000
California State University-Fullerton Public $38,985,000 1,740 $22,400
Humboldt State University Public $26,413,000 1,200 $22,000
California State University-San Marcos Public $22,995,000 1,060 $21,800
California State University-East Bay Public $35,018,000 1,610 $21,800
San Jose State University Public $97,666,000 4,490 $21,800
California State University-Chico Public $34,291,000 1,610 $21,300
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona Public $31,240,000 1,490 $21,000
California State University-Sacramento Public $105,493,000 5,170 $20,400
California State University-Long Beach Public $27,057,000 1,390 $19,400
California State University-Fresno Public $14,199,000 730 $19,400
California State University-Monterey Bay Public $19,784,000 1,070 $18,500
Fresno Pacific University Non-profit $10,648,000 580 $18,500
Santa Barbara City College Public $10,572,000 580 $18,200
California State University-San Bernardino Public $29,975,000 1,760 $17,100
Make-up Designory For-profit $15,843,000 940 $16,900
Stanbridge University For-profit $9,707,000 580 $16,700
California State University-Northridge Public $18,332,000 1,130 $16,200
California State University-Stanislaus Public $13,587,000 930 $14,600
West Coast Ultrasound Institute For-profit $9,333,000 670 $13,900
Unitek College For-profit $18,834,000 1,400 $13,500
Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts For-profit $9,979,000 740 $13,500
Ashford University For-profit $16,160,000 1,220 $13,200
Spartan College of Aeronautics & Technology For-profit $8,735,000 670 $13,000
California State University-Dominguez Hills Public $7,780,000 600 $12,900
American Career College-Ontario For-profit $15,631,000 1,400 $11,100
University of Antelope Valley For-profit $7,240,000 680 $10,700
Platt College-Los Angeles For-profit $12,956,000 1,250 $10,300
Concorde Career College-Garden Grove For-profit $8,452,000 820 $10,300
Concorde Career College-North Hollywood For-profit $9,769,000 980 $10,000
American Career College-Los Angeles For-profit $30,709,000 3,220 $9,500
Glendale Career College For-profit $6,240,000 670 $9,300
Concorde Career College-San Diego For-profit $6,102,000 670 $9,100
San Joaquin Valley College-Visalia For-profit $58,630,000 6,470 $9,100
Career Care Institute For-profit $4,574,000 520 $8,900
Concorde Career College-San Bernardino For-profit $8,042,000 910 $8,900
Carrington College-Sacramento For-profit $25,291,000 2,870 $8,800
Summit College For-profit $7,711,000 1,010 $7,700
UEI College-Fresno For-profit $9,019,000 1,190 $7,600
North-West College-Pomona For-profit $8,193,000 1,100 $7,400
UEI College-Gardena For-profit $10,958,000 1,490 $7,400
Institute of Technology For-profit $8,304,000 1,190 $7,000

Table 4: Grad PLUS debt

Top California institutions by average outstanding Grad PLUS balance
Institution name Control of institution Total outstanding Grad PLUS loan debt Total Grad PLUS loan borrowers Average outstanding Grad PLUS debt
Southwestern Law School Non-profit $466,086,000 3,520 $132,500
Palo Alto University Non-profit $188,296,000 1,420 $132,400
Thomas Jefferson School of Law Non-profit $386,041,000 2,940 $131,500
Whittier College Non-profit $192,420,000 1,540 $125,400
American Film Institute Conservatory Non-profit $78,440,000 680 $115,700
University of the Pacific Non-profit $722,725,000 6,440 $112,300
Five Branches University For-profit $58,339,000 530 $110,700
Saybrook University Non-profit $152,165,000 1,380 $110,200
Touro University California Non-profit $647,324,000 5,880 $110,200
Western University of Health Sciences Non-profit $912,829,000 8,440 $108,100
California Western School of Law Non-profit $317,943,000 3,010 $105,700
Sofia University For-profit $52,479,000 520 $101,300
Golden Gate University-San Francisco Non-profit $207,740,000 2,220 $93,800
Keck Graduate Institute Non-profit $76,608,000 840 $91,400
The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Los Angeles Non-profit $811,043,000 8,890 $91,200
Santa Clara University Non-profit $246,523,000 2,720 $90,800
Claremont Graduate University Non-profit $229,647,000 2,600 $88,400
Samuel Merritt University Non-profit $245,456,000 2,780 $88,100
Loma Linda University Non-profit $528,678,000 6,180 $85,600
University of California-Hastings College of Law Public $223,922,000 2,670 $83,800
Pacifica Graduate Institute For-profit $148,600,000 1,770 $83,800
Loyola Marymount University Non-profit $447,255,000 5,450 $82,100
Chapman University Non-profit $408,464,000 5,080 $80,300
California Institute of Integral Studies Non-profit $192,777,000 2,410 $80,100
University of Southern California Non-profit $2,829,189,000 35,830 $79,000
Alliant International University-San Diego For-profit $396,053,000 5,040 $78,500
The Wright Institute Non-profit $55,801,000 740 $75,600
Fielding Graduate University Non-profit $81,590,000 1,130 $72,000
John F. Kennedy University Non-profit $95,757,000 1,380 $69,100
University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences For-profit $401,398,000 5,810 $69,000
New York Film Academy For-profit $34,630,000 510 $67,800
Marshall B Ketchum University Non-profit $49,058,000 730 $67,200
Pepperdine University Non-profit $623,055,000 9,350 $66,600
West Coast University-Los Angeles For-profit $67,178,000 1,050 $64,100
University of San Francisco Non-profit $398,078,000 6,350 $62,700
California Institute of the Arts Non-profit $61,305,000 1,000 $61,200
University of San Diego Non-profit $356,275,000 5,840 $61,000
University of California-Berkeley Public $321,216,000 5,260 $61,000
University of La Verne Non-profit $122,504,000 2,180 $56,100
Life Chiropractic College West Non-profit $65,701,000 1,200 $55,000
Stanford University Non-profit $119,632,000 2,190 $54,700
Mount Saint Mary’s University Non-profit $42,389,000 780 $54,200
University of California-Los Angeles Public $519,517,000 9,680 $53,700
Charles R Drew University of Medicine and Science Non-profit $82,399,000 1,630 $50,500
University of California-Irvine Public $159,556,000 3,220 $49,600
University of California-San Francisco Public $134,746,000 2,730 $49,300
Pacific College of Health and Science For-profit $53,568,000 1,100 $48,600
California College of the Arts Non-profit $37,551,000 840 $44,900
Dominican University of California Non-profit $22,939,000 520 $44,500
University of California-Davis Public $170,363,000 3,850 $44,200
Academy of Art University For-profit $225,305,000 5,130 $43,900
Southern California University of Health Sciences Non-profit $54,429,000 1,310 $41,400
Fuller Theological Seminary Non-profit $37,919,000 950 $40,000
University of California-Santa Barbara Public $30,178,000 830 $36,500
Mills College Non-profit $32,719,000 920 $35,400
University of California-San Diego Public $68,236,000 1,990 $34,200
Saint Mary’s College of California Non-profit $32,742,000 990 $33,100
California Baptist University Non-profit $69,832,000 2,130 $32,800
Azusa Pacific University Non-profit $243,019,000 7,500 $32,400
California Lutheran University Non-profit $16,958,000 570 $29,900
Pacific Oaks College Non-profit $14,060,000 500 $27,800
University of California-Riverside Public $50,625,000 1,830 $27,600
Northcentral University Non-profit $227,499,000 8,460 $26,900
Brandman University Non-profit $107,302,000 4,050 $26,500
University of Redlands Non-profit $26,865,000 1,030 $26,000
Ashford University For-profit $36,036,000 1,710 $21,100
California State University-San Marcos Public $17,114,000 930 $18,500
California State University-Northridge Public $18,034,000 1,010 $17,900
San Diego State University Public $31,383,000 1,800 $17,400
California State University-Long Beach Public $10,096,000 610 $16,400
San Francisco State University Public $26,683,000 1,890 $14,100
San Jose State University Public $26,497,000 2,100 $12,600
National University Non-profit $130,947,000 10,970 $11,900

Table 4: Total debt

Top 100 California institutions by total outstanding loan balance
Institution name Control of institution Total outstanding debt
University of Southern California Non-profit $7,362,011,000
Ashford University For-profit $7,343,035,000
National University Non-profit $2,740,725,000
University of California-Los Angeles Public $2,679,982,000
Academy of Art University For-profit $1,950,123,000
Pepperdine University Non-profit $1,901,959,000
University of the Pacific Non-profit $1,880,446,000
California State University-Northridge Public $1,703,645,000
Loma Linda University Non-profit $1,680,780,000
San Diego State University Public $1,678,789,000
San Francisco State University Public $1,665,963,000
Azusa Pacific University Non-profit $1,659,782,000
University of California-Berkeley Public $1,610,725,000
Alliant International University-San Diego For-profit $1,605,193,000
Chapman University Non-profit $1,589,548,000
University of California-Davis Public $1,534,082,000
University of California-Irvine Public $1,505,062,000
University of San Francisco Non-profit $1,460,768,000
California State University-Sacramento Public $1,439,264,000
Loyola Marymount University Non-profit $1,422,127,000
California State University-Long Beach Public $1,413,343,000
University of La Verne Non-profit $1,369,905,000
California State University-Fullerton Public $1,262,686,000
University of San Diego Non-profit $1,257,027,000
California Baptist University Non-profit $1,233,632,000
California State University-San Bernardino Public $1,211,396,000
University of California-Riverside Public $1,178,156,000
University of California-San Diego Public $1,129,847,000
San Jose State University Public $1,112,765,000
University of California-Santa Barbara Public $1,040,125,000
California State University-Los Angeles Public $944,089,000
California State University-Fresno Public $903,141,000
Brandman University Non-profit $889,725,000
University of California-Santa Cruz Public $824,556,000
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona Public $791,568,000
California State University-Dominguez Hills Public $788,559,000
California State University-East Bay Public $737,210,000
California State University-Chico Public $734,119,000
Santa Clara University Non-profit $700,320,000
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo Public $697,132,000
Samuel Merritt University Non-profit $666,251,000
University of Redlands Non-profit $621,470,000
Southern California University of Health Sciences Non-profit $582,606,000
FIDM-Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising-Los Angeles For-profit $558,480,000
California State University-San Marcos Public $557,321,000
Whittier College Non-profit $538,538,000
Humboldt State University Public $502,392,000
John F. Kennedy University Non-profit $501,504,000
Mount Saint Mary’s University Non-profit $473,703,000
Sonoma State University Public $461,694,000
California State University-Bakersfield Public $457,630,000
Biola University Non-profit $451,712,000
Palo Alto University Non-profit $448,438,000
Point Loma Nazarene University Non-profit $443,415,000
Saint Mary’s College of California Non-profit $443,280,000
California Lutheran University Non-profit $424,152,000
California State University-Stanislaus Public $418,313,000
Concordia University-Irvine Non-profit $402,230,000
Fresno Pacific University Non-profit $401,028,000
Stanford University Non-profit $381,473,000
California Institute of the Arts Non-profit $306,070,000
La Sierra University Non-profit $286,591,000
California State University-Monterey Bay Public $284,417,000
Art Center College of Design Non-profit $267,319,000
Dominican University of California Non-profit $252,265,000
California State University-Channel Islands Public $248,845,000
University of California-Merced Public $244,659,000
Notre Dame de Namur University Non-profit $238,658,000
Vanguard University of Southern California Non-profit $232,167,000
Mills College Non-profit $221,747,000
Woodbury University Non-profit $221,604,000
California College of the Arts Non-profit $218,218,000
Charles R Drew University of Medicine and Science Non-profit $217,138,000
Trident University International For-profit $209,470,000
Humphreys University-Stockton and Modesto Campuses Non-profit $187,905,000
Holy Names University Non-profit $175,883,000
Otis College of Art and Design Non-profit $147,248,000
New York Film Academy For-profit $141,536,000
Stanbridge University For-profit $131,041,000
Keck Graduate Institute Non-profit $128,299,000
Southern California Institute of Architecture Non-profit $127,419,000
Simpson University Non-profit $125,318,000
San Francisco Art Institute Non-profit $124,524,000
Newschool of Architecture and Design For-profit $117,801,000
William Jessup University Non-profit $101,497,000
Occidental College Non-profit $83,199,000
Marymount California University Non-profit $69,483,000
Laguna College of Art and Design Non-profit $65,419,000
San Francisco Conservatory of Music Non-profit $61,203,000
Los Angeles Pacific University Non-profit $58,394,000
Empire College For-profit $54,682,000
American University of Health Sciences For-profit $40,486,000
American Jewish University Non-profit $31,758,000
Westcliff University For-profit $19,853,000
John Paul the Great Catholic University Non-profit $18,246,000
University of the West Non-profit $9,142,000
Academy of Chinese Culture and Health Sciences Non-profit NA
Avalon School of Cosmetology-Alameda For-profit NA
College of Alameda Public NA
Allan Hancock College Public NA

Data Source and Notes

Data source: College Scorecard institution dataset, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Department of Education here.

Timeframe reflected: Loan data in this table reflect borrowers’ balances as measured in the National Student Loan Data System on June 30, 2021.

Notes: Only 73 institutions have at least 500 borrowers with outstanding Grad PLUS debt. Total debt rounded to nearest $1,000, total borrowers rounded to nearest 10, and average debt rounded to nearest $100.

Table 4 was limited to institutions headquartered in California. However, institutions based outside of California are also a major source of debt for Californians thanks to online education.

For Table 5, I use IPEDS data on the share of enrollment that is online and the share of enrollment from California to estimate online enrollment by college students who reside in California. By applying those percentages to measures of outstanding debt, I estimate the share of debt that comes from California students enrolled online.

Table 5 ranks the top institutions headquartered outside of California by total estimated outstanding debt from California students enrolled online. It is perhaps no surprise to see these institutions listed, as they are the largest universities in the country by online enrollment. However, it is somewhat startling to think about the volume of debt placed on Californians’ shoulders from these out-of-state institutions: almost $5 billion from just the University of Phoenix and Grand Canyon University alone.

Table 5

Top 100 institutions based outside California, by estimated outstanding debt from online enrollment by California students
Institution name State Estimated students from California enrolled online, Fall 2018 Estimated outstanding debt from California students enrolled online
University of Phoenix-Arizona AZ 7,690 $3,033,074,000
Grand Canyon University AZ 18,310 $1,890,235,000
DeVry University-Illinois IL 1,800 $864,964,000
Walden University MN 3,200 $795,580,000
University of Maryland Global Campus MD 10,110 $540,717,000
Capella University MN 1,710 $370,081,000
Arizona State University Campus Immersion AZ 4,430 $289,438,000
Southern New Hampshire University NH 5,800 $283,713,000
Western Governors University UT 7,660 $252,840,000
Liberty University VA 1,620 $174,306,000
American Public University System WV 4,230 $173,197,000
Purdue University Global IN 580 $147,685,000
Northern Arizona University AZ 1,200 $87,545,000
American InterContinental University AZ 210 $87,148,000
Full Sail University FL 500 $80,491,000
South University-Savannah GA 280 $71,531,000
Johns Hopkins University MD 1,130 $67,791,000
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach FL 1,320 $65,624,000
Colorado Technical University-Colorado Springs CO 360 $63,223,000
Columbia Southern University AL 1,350 $58,300,000
George Washington University DC 470 $55,440,000
Gonzaga University WA 500 $54,062,000
Stevens-Henager College UT 470 $52,717,000
Concordia University-Portland OR 340 $52,316,000
Ultimate Medical Academy FL 630 $50,333,000
Post University CT 520 $49,028,000
Regis University CO 300 $47,738,000
Bellevue University NE 480 $47,277,000
University of Arizona AZ 670 $46,760,000
Oregon State University OR 870 $45,406,000
Strayer University-District of Columbia DC 220 $44,716,000
Nova Southeastern University FL 80 $43,456,000
Logan University MO 70 $43,064,000
Boise State University ID 800 $38,532,000
Columbia College MO 330 $37,310,000
New York University NY 240 $34,344,000
Brigham Young University-Idaho ID 2,510 $32,406,000
Boston University MA 340 $32,213,000
Georgetown University DC 200 $30,909,000
University of Denver CO 170 $30,328,000
Creighton University NE 120 $26,281,000
Prescott College AZ 120 $25,092,000
Ottawa University-Ottawa KS 140 $24,341,000
Northeastern University MA 390 $21,666,000
Regent University VA 140 $20,462,000
Harvard University MA 550 $20,439,000
Washington State University WA 320 $20,352,000
Excelsior College NY 2,200 $17,914,000
Simmons University MA 100 $16,890,000
Colorado Christian University CO 260 $16,523,000
Bryan University AZ 100 $15,542,000
Syracuse University NY 170 $15,223,000
Colorado State University-Fort Collins CO 250 $14,988,000
Portland State University OR 160 $13,921,000
Park University MO 260 $13,841,000
Charter College WA 110 $13,796,000
Wilmington University DE 170 $13,532,000
Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus PA 190 $13,500,000
Berklee College of Music MA 170 $13,092,000
DePaul University IL 80 $12,607,000
Grambling State University LA 40 $12,543,000
Tulane University of Louisiana LA 80 $11,616,000
Webster University MO 40 $10,525,000
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign IL 210 $9,995,000
Columbia University in the City of New York NY 90 $9,665,000
Grantham University KS 180 $9,561,000
University of Nevada-Reno NV 230 $9,493,000
Maryville University of Saint Louis MO 100 $9,339,000
The University of Alabama AL 140 $9,253,000
University of New England ME 50 $9,244,000
Southern Oregon University OR 120 $9,115,000
University of Hawaii at Manoa HI 140 $8,819,000
MCPHS University MA 50 $8,801,000
Waldorf University IA 220 $8,532,000
NUC University PR 110 $8,379,000
Loyola University New Orleans LA 40 $8,355,000
Franklin University OH 40 $8,142,000
Fordham University NY 60 $7,814,000
National Paralegal College AZ 100 $7,645,000
Hawaii Pacific University HI 80 $7,540,000
Rasmussen University-Minnesota MN 60 $7,354,000
Southern Methodist University TX 80 $7,183,000
American University DC 50 $7,083,000
University of Colorado Boulder CO 150 $7,066,000
Keiser University-Ft Lauderdale FL 40 $7,060,000
George Fox University OR 60 $6,933,000
Jackson State University MS 30 $6,874,000
Northwestern University IL 80 $6,708,000
Loyola University Chicago IL 50 $6,692,000
Bryant & Stratton College-Buffalo NY 30 $6,513,000
University of Utah UT 120 $6,466,000
Concordia University-Chicago IL 80 $6,244,000
National American University-Rapid City SD 20 $6,146,000
University of Nevada-Las Vegas NV 90 $6,098,000
LeTourneau University TX 50 $6,082,000
Graceland University-Lamoni IA 50 $6,062,000
Upper Iowa University IA 50 $5,974,000
Duke University NC 80 $5,972,000
Purdue University-Main Campus IN 160 $5,948,000
Indiana University-Bloomington IN 100 $5,892,000

Data Source and Notes

Data source: The figures in this table were calculated using data from two sources. First is the College Scorecard institution dataset, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Department of Education here. Second is the IPEDS Fall Enrollment survey, accessed December 2022, available through NCES here.

Timeframe reflected: Loan data used for this table reflect borrowers’ balances as measured in the National Student Loan Data System on June 30, 2021. Enrollment data on distance education reflect Fall 2018. I use this enrollment data as a proxy for current enrollment.

Notes: Estimated outstanding debt is rounded to the nearest $1,000. Estimated online enrollment is rounded to the nearest 10.

In total, an estimated $11.6 billion comes from online enrollment by California students at institutions based outside the state.

The top institutions by outstanding debt have so far all been private institutions. In the first tab of Table 6, we see the breakdown of loan debt from California’s three public sectors. In total, there is $37 billion in outstanding debt from California’s public colleges and universities, with the CSU and UC contributing the vast majority.

The next tab shows outstanding debt by program and institutional control. Nonprofit institutions contribute the most total debt, $54 billion, with an outsized share coming from the Grad PLUS program (25.6 percent). Debt from for-profit colleges totals $24 billion and is almost all in Stafford loans. Meanwhile, public institutions see Parent PLUS contributing the largest share of total sector debt at 8.2 percent.

Table 6: California public segments

Public segments of California higher education by outstanding federal student loan debt
Segment Outstanding Stafford debt Outstanding Parent PLUS debt Outstanding Grad PLUS debt Total debt
California Community Colleges $4,165,851,000 $38,537,000 $0 $4,204,388,000
California State University $18,561,803,000 $1,316,346,000 $191,927,000 $20,070,076,000
University of California $9,436,226,000 $1,700,179,000 $1,689,365,000 $12,825,770,000
All segments $32,163,879,000 $3,055,061,000 $1,881,292,000 $37,100,233,000

Table 6: All California sectors

Sectors of California higher education by outstanding federal student loan debt
Sector Outstanding Stafford debt Outstanding Parent PLUS debt Outstanding Grad PLUS debt Total debt
For-profit $20,629,814,000 $1,621,262,000 $1,546,676,000 $23,797,752,000
Non-profit $36,862,451,000 $3,253,504,000 $13,778,933,000 $53,894,889,000
Public $32,217,284,000 $3,055,304,000 $1,881,292,000 $37,153,880,000
All sectors $89,709,549,000 $7,930,071,000 $17,206,902,000 $114,846,521,000

Data Source and Notes

Data source: College Scorecard institution dataset, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Department of Education here.

Timeframe reflected: Loan data in this table reflect borrowers’ balances as measured in the National Student Loan Data System on June 30, 2021.

Notes: Values rounded to the nearest $1,000.

Table 7 compares institutions by their share of undergraduates who receive federal student loans. The top 25 are all for-profit colleges, with a few exceptions. Examples like West Coast University-Los Angeles, which have a median debt at graduation north of $30,000 and see almost 9 out of every 10 undergraduates borrowing loans, are cases where a student who graduates without significant debt is almost a rarity.

Table 7

Top 100 California institutions by the shares of undergraduates borrowing loans
Institution name Control Percent of undergraduates who receive federal student loans Median debt at graduation
Premiere Career College For-profit 93.8% $15,932
Mayfield College For-profit 91.7% $9,025
InterCoast Colleges-Santa Ana For-profit 90.6% $10,055
Mount Saint Mary’s University Non-profit 88.7% $25,000
West Coast University-Los Angeles For-profit 87.9% $33,319
Pacific Oaks College Non-profit 87.3% $26,319
Stanbridge University For-profit 87.0% $20,002
Southern California Health Institute For-profit 84.9% $9,500
West Coast Ultrasound Institute For-profit 83.9% $20,667
American College of Healthcare and Technology For-profit 80.3% $9,500
Chamberlain University-California For-profit 80.1% $22,204
UEI College-Gardena For-profit 79.9% $9,500
Platt College-Los Angeles For-profit 79.5% $18,873
High Desert Medical College For-profit 77.7% $15,866
UEI College-Fresno For-profit 77.4% $9,500
Glendale Career College For-profit 77.3% $9,500
Santa Barbara Business College-Bakersfield For-profit 77.1% $16,163
Career Care Institute For-profit 75.9% $12,978
United Education Institute-Huntington Park Campus For-profit 73.6% $9,500
Los Angeles Pacific University Non-profit 73.4% $10,500
MTI College For-profit 73.4% $8,762
CBD College Non-profit 73.0% $18,250
Concorde Career College-Garden Grove For-profit 72.7% $11,898
Career Networks Institute For-profit 72.6% $26,479
Fresno Pacific University Non-profit 70.5% $23,219
Hussian College-Los Angeles For-profit 70.2% $16,666
National Career College For-profit 69.9% $8,391
Concorde Career College-San Bernardino For-profit 69.5% $9,500
Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts For-profit 68.8% $17,317
California Baptist University Non-profit 68.7% $27,000
Whittier College Non-profit 68.5% $25,000
North-West College-Pomona For-profit 68.1% $9,500
Saint Mary’s College of California Non-profit 68.0% $24,000
Hope International University Non-profit 66.4% $23,750
Salon Success Academy-Corona For-profit 66.1% $7,177
Southern California Institute of Technology For-profit 65.6% $10,908
Concorde Career College-North Hollywood For-profit 65.4% $11,000
Blake Austin College For-profit 65.3% $9,500
Summit College For-profit 64.3% $7,600
Universal Technical Institute of California Inc For-profit 64.1% $14,243
William Jessup University Non-profit 64.1% $22,334
North-West College-West Covina For-profit 64.0% $9,500
La Sierra University Non-profit 63.9% $27,000
Simpson University Non-profit 63.5% $19,742
Universal Technical Institute of Northern California Inc For-profit 63.1% $13,875
Paul Mitchell the School-Temecula For-profit 62.5% $13,583
Los Angeles Film School For-profit 62.3% $23,000
Paul Mitchell the School-Sacramento For-profit 62.1% $6,333
American Career College-Ontario For-profit 62.0% $9,500
University of La Verne Non-profit 61.9% $24,250
Spartan College of Aeronautics & Technology For-profit 61.8% $20,000
Dominican University of California Non-profit 60.8% $27,000
Loma Linda University Non-profit 60.6% $20,082
Concordia University-Irvine Non-profit 60.5% $23,949
American Career College-Los Angeles For-profit 60.3% $9,500
San Joaquin Valley College-Visalia For-profit 60.3% $10,673
Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey Non-profit 60.0% $13,293
Milan Institute-Visalia For-profit 59.5% $7,917
Concorde Career College-San Diego For-profit 59.1% $9,500
Paul Mitchell the School-Modesto For-profit 58.1% $6,333
University of Redlands Non-profit 58.1% $26,249
Ashford University For-profit 56.7% $31,802
Biola University Non-profit 56.3% $24,273
DeVry University-California For-profit 56.0% $28,308
Samuel Merritt University Non-profit 55.3% $20,389
Point Loma Nazarene University Non-profit 54.6% $23,000
Milan Institute of Cosmetology-Fairfield For-profit 53.9% $6,333
Federico Beauty Institute For-profit 53.8% $6,272
Westmont College Non-profit 53.6% $23,250
California Lutheran University Non-profit 52.7% $21,750
Carrington College-Sacramento For-profit 52.2% $10,813
Aveda Institute-Los Angeles For-profit 52.1% $6,333
Paul Mitchell the School-Costa Mesa For-profit 51.8% $9,916
University of the Pacific Non-profit 51.6% $19,500
University of San Francisco Non-profit 51.3% $23,250
California College San Diego Non-profit 51.3% $25,726
Make-up Designory For-profit 51.2% $4,962
FIDM-Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising-Los Angeles For-profit 50.4% $14,165
National Holistic Institute For-profit 50.2% $9,500
Humboldt State University Public 50.0% $17,993
Bellus Academy-Poway For-profit 49.7% $9,154
The Master’s University and Seminary Non-profit 48.3% $21,000
University of Antelope Valley For-profit 48.2% $13,388
Chapman University Non-profit 48.0% $20,500
University of California-Merced Public 47.5% $17,500
Academy of Art University For-profit 47.2% $31,000
Institute of Technology For-profit 47.1% $9,500
Milan Institute-Fresno For-profit 46.3% $6,333
University of California-Riverside Public 45.0% $18,000
Occidental College Non-profit 44.8% $22,336
Art Center College of Design Non-profit 44.4% $31,218
Azusa Pacific University Non-profit 43.9% $23,350
California State University-Chico Public 43.6% $16,931
Institute of Culinary Education For-profit 42.0% $6,439
Pepperdine University Non-profit 40.5% $25,000
Brandman University Non-profit 40.4% $23,451
University of Phoenix-California For-profit 40.2% $32,421
California State University-Monterey Bay Public 40.2% $13,750
Institute for Business and Technology For-profit 39.3% $8,152
University of California-Santa Cruz Public 38.9% $17,484

Data Source and Notes

Data source: College Scorecard institution dataset, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Department of Education here.

Timeframe reflected: Data in the “Percent of undergraduates who received federal student loans” column reflect students enrolled in academic year 2019-20. Data in the “Median debt at graduation” reflect pooled cohorts of students who graduated in fiscal year 2019 or fiscal year 2020.

Notes: Percentages rounded to nearest 0.1%.

Table 8 is the first to look at long-term debt repayment. When a student borrows, are they able to pay down the balance or do those balances rise as interest accumulates? The data in this table reflect the cohort of borrowers who entered repayment in 2008-09, and it compares the cohort’s original total balance with their balance at the ten-year mark of repayment. For example, a ratio of 0.7 would mean that the current total balance is 70 percent of the original total balance. A ratio above 1 indicates that the cohort is struggling to even keep up with interest payments.

Some colleges near the top of the list for Stafford loans are, in fact, California community colleges. The average outstanding balance 10 years into repayment is less than $15,000, but ratios about 1 indicate that this average is actually greater than the original average balance the borrowers had when they entered repayment.

With Parent PLUS loans, the ratios for California institutions do not reach as high, but the average balances are higher. Taking La Sierra University as an example, the ratio of 0.85 and average balance of $15,000 means that, after ten years, Parent PLUS borrowers with loans from this school continue to owe $15,000 and have only successfully paid off 15 percent of their balance. These families are likely to continue struggling to repay, especially as the parents holding these loans approach retirement age. Some of the top institutions on this list are art colleges, which may not bode well for the recipients of those loans to be able to help pay off their parents’ PLUS loans.

The table on Grad PLUS could be taken with a grain of salt since those in the medical and law fields often start with very high debt amounts and take years to build up their incomes to start repaying. However, the fact that some ratios are as high as 1.2 is concerning: this means the typical borrower owes 30 percent more after ten years than they did at the start of repayment. Four schools raise flags for high ratios and high average Grad PLUS debt amounts: Life Chiropractic College West, Southern California University of Health Sciences, American Film Institute Conservatory, and Thomas Jefferson School of Law.

Table 8: Stafford

California institutions by ratio of Stafford borrowers’ current balance to original balance, 10 years into repayment
Institution name Control of institution Ratio of current Stafford balance to original balance, 10 years into repayment Average outstanding Stafford debt, 10 years into repayment
Solano Community College Public 1.191 $12,127
InterCoast Colleges-Santa Ana For-profit 1.183 $9,845
Humphreys University-Stockton and Modesto Campuses Non-profit 1.179 $19,479
Victor Valley College Public 1.167 $9,407
Mt San Jacinto Community College District Public 1.159 $10,730
Antelope Valley College Public 1.153 $9,079
California College San Diego Non-profit 1.149 $15,667
Fremont College For-profit 1.139 $12,567
San Joaquin Delta College Public 1.134 $8,892
Santa Barbara Business College-Bakersfield For-profit 1.129 $8,873
Santiago Canyon College Public 1.118 $6,854
Copper Mountain Community College Public 1.117 $12,325
Berkeley City College Public 1.109 $8,586
Compton College Public 1.108 $5,370
Hussian College-Los Angeles For-profit 1.099 $10,544
Los Angeles Mission College Public 1.096 $6,789
Folsom Lake College Public 1.092 $7,355
Milan Institute of Cosmetology-Fairfield For-profit 1.092 $8,793
United Education Institute-Huntington Park Campus For-profit 1.089 $7,386
California Aeronautical University For-profit 1.086 $8,329
College of the Siskiyous Public 1.075 $8,314
Citrus College Public 1.066 $6,900
Milan Institute-Fresno For-profit 1.052 $7,868
American River College Public 1.052 $7,681
West Los Angeles College Public 1.051 $7,571
Platt College-Los Angeles For-profit 1.049 $13,422
UEI College-Fresno For-profit 1.045 $6,351
Advanced College For-profit 1.040 $9,018
Bellus Academy-Chula Vista For-profit 1.039 $8,046
University of Antelope Valley For-profit 1.038 $6,905
Columbia College Hollywood Non-profit 1.036 $17,468
West Hills College-Coalinga Public 1.034 $5,817
Cerro Coso Community College Public 1.033 $6,342
Healthcare Career College For-profit 1.033 $5,343
Institute of Technology For-profit 1.032 $6,762
West Hills College-Lemoore Public 1.029 $4,740
Chabot College Public 1.017 $6,636
Summit College For-profit 1.015 $9,805
Sacramento City College Public 1.009 $8,322
American Career College-Ontario For-profit 1.008 $6,957
San Joaquin Valley College-Visalia For-profit 1.008 $9,850
College of Marin Public 1.002 $9,207
El Camino Community College District Public 1.002 $5,934
Columbia College - Los Alamitos Non-profit 1.001 $11,478
John F. Kennedy University Non-profit 0.995 $17,888
Bellus Academy-El Cajon For-profit 0.992 $6,809
PCI College For-profit 0.991 $8,078
Milan Institute-Palm Desert For-profit 0.989 $6,627
East Los Angeles College Public 0.989 $8,498
Valley College of Medical Careers For-profit 0.989 $6,410
Concorde Career College-San Diego For-profit 0.988 $7,514
Rio Hondo College Public 0.987 $7,382
Cambridge Junior College-Yuba City For-profit 0.987 $7,226
Milan Institute-Visalia For-profit 0.987 $6,615
Adrian’s College of Beauty Turlock For-profit 0.984 $7,418
Platt College-San Diego For-profit 0.981 $16,131
Allan Hancock College Public 0.981 $7,903
Cosumnes River College Public 0.980 $6,997
DeVry University-California For-profit 0.979 $13,654
Sierra College Public 0.976 $7,788
Butte College Public 0.975 $7,241
North Adrian’s College of Beauty Inc For-profit 0.975 $5,869
Concorde Career College-San Bernardino For-profit 0.974 $8,204
Gavilan College Public 0.973 $5,391
Cypress College Public 0.966 $7,821
American Academy of Dramatic Arts-Los Angeles Non-profit 0.962 $9,400
Capstone College For-profit 0.960 $4,709
Feather River Community College District Public 0.959 $5,304
Los Angeles Pierce College Public 0.958 $6,957
American Career College-Los Angeles For-profit 0.954 $6,970
Academy of Art University For-profit 0.951 $11,640
Pacific Oaks College Non-profit 0.948 $15,056
University of Phoenix-California For-profit 0.940 $8,681
California State University-San Bernardino Public 0.934 $13,403
Bakersfield College Public 0.934 $5,512
Southern California Institute of Technology For-profit 0.931 $7,500
Alliant International University-San Diego For-profit 0.930 $11,581
Empire College For-profit 0.929 $8,790
Holy Names University Non-profit 0.924 $11,978
Carrington College-Sacramento For-profit 0.923 $8,461
ATI College-Norwalk For-profit 0.920 $9,912
National Polytechnic College For-profit 0.915 $6,250
Premiere Career College For-profit 0.909 $7,687
College of the Redwoods Public 0.908 $6,177
Institute for Business and Technology For-profit 0.908 $6,101
Santa Barbara City College Public 0.907 $6,466
Long Beach City College Public 0.907 $4,901
Antioch University-Los Angeles Non-profit 0.904 $14,230
Mendocino College Public 0.902 $6,500
Pacific College For-profit 0.899 $10,118
Ashford University For-profit 0.899 $6,616
Monterey Peninsula College Public 0.898 $5,720
North-West College-Pomona For-profit 0.889 $6,795
Career Care Institute For-profit 0.888 $6,476
Merritt College Public 0.888 $4,951
Ventura College Public 0.887 $7,098
MTI College For-profit 0.886 $6,941
San Francisco Art Institute Non-profit 0.884 $13,365
Santa Barbara Business College-Santa Maria For-profit 0.882 $7,188
University of La Verne Non-profit 0.881 $13,808
Lancaster Beauty School For-profit 0.881 $4,716
Coba Academy For-profit 0.880 $7,858
San Bernardino Valley College Public 0.876 $4,093
San Jose City College Public 0.873 $4,178
Colleen O’Haras Beauty Academy For-profit 0.873 $6,322
Shasta College Public 0.872 $5,863
Avalon School of Cosmetology-Alameda For-profit 0.872 $4,575
Yuba College Public 0.870 $5,616
San Diego City College Public 0.869 $4,177
Southern California Institute of Architecture Non-profit 0.868 $18,613
California State University-Dominguez Hills Public 0.866 $8,347
Cabrillo College Public 0.863 $6,510
Lassen Community College Public 0.859 $4,218
Fullerton College Public 0.857 $4,345
City College of San Francisco Public 0.857 $6,694
Spartan College of Aeronautics & Technology For-profit 0.855 $9,757
Los Angeles City College Public 0.855 $4,273
Coastline Community College Public 0.854 $4,947
Concorde Career College-North Hollywood For-profit 0.852 $7,236
Trident University International For-profit 0.850 $8,117
Irvine Valley College Public 0.847 $5,413
NTMA Training Centers of Southern California Non-profit 0.845 $4,840
Cuyamaca College Public 0.843 $3,434
Palomar College Public 0.843 $3,363
College of the Canyons Public 0.842 $5,583
Mission College Public 0.840 $5,096
The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Los Angeles Non-profit 0.831 $9,098
Universal Technical Institute of Northern California Inc For-profit 0.830 $9,359
CET-San Jose Non-profit 0.829 $3,589
South Coast College For-profit 0.828 $11,419
Newschool of Architecture and Design For-profit 0.825 $14,367
SAE Expression College For-profit 0.825 $16,435
California Baptist University Non-profit 0.824 $12,778
De Anza College Public 0.823 $5,862
California Healing Arts College For-profit 0.822 $5,162
Moorpark College Public 0.822 $6,130
Glendale Career College For-profit 0.821 $7,376
Los Angeles Film School For-profit 0.820 $5,758
Woodbury University Non-profit 0.815 $15,471
Glendale Community College Public 0.809 $4,867
Career Networks Institute For-profit 0.808 $6,699
Pima Medical Institute-Chula Vista For-profit 0.806 $6,042
Fresno City College Public 0.806 $3,052
Marymount California University Non-profit 0.803 $4,852
Los Angeles Center Non-profit 0.802 $12,636
La Sierra University Non-profit 0.802 $9,338
San Diego Miramar College Public 0.802 $3,478
California State University-Bakersfield Public 0.799 $8,368
Bellus Academy-Poway For-profit 0.794 $5,624
Associated Technical College-San Diego For-profit 0.792 $2,500
Royale College of Beauty and Barbering For-profit 0.791 $4,001
National University Non-profit 0.791 $11,069
Evergreen Valley College Public 0.787 $5,532
Santa Monica College Public 0.786 $3,638
UEI College-Gardena For-profit 0.784 $4,395
Design Institute of San Diego For-profit 0.784 $16,619
Santa Ana College Public 0.778 $5,360
California State University-Los Angeles Public 0.777 $6,928
Pasadena City College Public 0.776 $4,010
College of the Sequoias Public 0.774 $3,798
Salon Success Academy-Corona For-profit 0.773 $4,287
Orange Coast College Public 0.769 $4,450
Reedley College Public 0.768 $2,607
Modern Technology School For-profit 0.761 $9,158
California State University-Northridge Public 0.760 $8,709
Humboldt State University Public 0.760 $9,394
Cerritos College Public 0.757 $4,012
Napa Valley College Public 0.753 $6,108
Hope International University Non-profit 0.752 $9,199
Musicians Institute For-profit 0.749 $4,849
Chamberlain University-California For-profit 0.746 $11,742
Concorde Career College-Garden Grove For-profit 0.743 $6,473
West Valley College Public 0.740 $3,780
Chaffey College Public 0.737 $2,564
Mills College Non-profit 0.736 $10,446
San Diego Mesa College Public 0.735 $3,185
Stanbridge University For-profit 0.732 $6,395
California Hair Design Academy For-profit 0.728 $4,042
Southwestern College Public 0.726 $2,752
California State University-San Marcos Public 0.723 $8,823
Trinity Law School Non-profit 0.722 $9,558
Pitzer College Non-profit 0.721 $6,554
San Francisco State University Public 0.720 $9,389
Design’s School of Cosmetology For-profit 0.718 $3,668
National Holistic Institute For-profit 0.717 $4,640
Fresno Pacific University Non-profit 0.717 $9,228
Blake Austin College For-profit 0.716 $6,172
Mount Saint Mary’s University Non-profit 0.715 $10,709
Los Angeles Harbor College Public 0.715 $4,115
Casa Loma College-Van Nuys Non-profit 0.715 $6,999
College of the Desert Public 0.715 $3,162
Universal Technical Institute of California Inc For-profit 0.714 $7,264
California State University-Fresno Public 0.711 $8,116
Santa Rosa Junior College Public 0.708 $4,748
California Institute of the Arts Non-profit 0.707 $11,241
Ohlone College Public 0.707 $5,600
Menlo College Non-profit 0.705 $8,143
Los Angeles Valley College Public 0.700 $3,191
Asher College For-profit 0.698 $3,130
California State University-East Bay Public 0.698 $7,764
Hypnosis Motivation Institute Non-profit 0.697 $4,992
Salon Success Academy-Upland For-profit 0.696 $3,509
Golden West College Public 0.694 $3,812
Saddleback College Public 0.693 $3,827
Riverside City College Public 0.687 $3,496
Diablo Valley College Public 0.685 $3,723
California State University-Channel Islands Public 0.684 $6,942
California College of the Arts Non-profit 0.682 $12,256
Federico Beauty Institute For-profit 0.677 $4,230
San Diego Christian College Non-profit 0.676 $8,143
CBD College Non-profit 0.676 $9,161
Golden Gate University-San Francisco Non-profit 0.671 $10,539
Chapman University Non-profit 0.667 $10,193
California State University-Stanislaus Public 0.665 $6,704
Cuesta College Public 0.662 $3,599
California State University-Sacramento Public 0.658 $7,641
Art Center College of Design Non-profit 0.651 $12,966
North-West College-West Covina For-profit 0.650 $3,392
Brownson Technical School For-profit 0.650 $3,459
Mt San Antonio College Public 0.649 $3,685
Palladium Technical Academy Inc For-profit 0.649 $3,720
Vanguard University of Southern California Non-profit 0.648 $8,851
West Coast Ultrasound Institute For-profit 0.648 $7,286
San Diego State University Public 0.648 $7,801
Simpson University Non-profit 0.648 $8,054
Professional Golfers Career College For-profit 0.647 $6,843
North-West College-Van Nuys For-profit 0.642 $3,379
MiraCosta College Public 0.640 $2,464
Central California School of Continuing Education For-profit 0.636 $4,550
Paul Mitchell the School-Costa Mesa For-profit 0.630 $4,901
Notre Dame de Namur University Non-profit 0.627 $9,305
Sonoma State University Public 0.623 $7,825
Grossmont College Public 0.621 $2,352
Life Pacific University Non-profit 0.617 $7,225
Otis College of Art and Design Non-profit 0.610 $10,227
West Coast University-Los Angeles For-profit 0.610 $8,274
University of California-Riverside Public 0.607 $6,817
William Jessup University Non-profit 0.601 $8,326
Pacific Union College Non-profit 0.601 $7,322
California State University-Fullerton Public 0.596 $6,486
Associated Technical College-Los Angeles For-profit 0.593 $1,801
California State University-Monterey Bay Public 0.590 $5,491
Palomar Institute of Cosmetology For-profit 0.587 $3,645
Central Coast College For-profit 0.577 $2,538
California State University-Chico Public 0.573 $6,148
Career Academy of Beauty For-profit 0.572 $2,410
Dominican University of California Non-profit 0.572 $8,343
FIDM-Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising-Los Angeles For-profit 0.570 $4,390
Foothill College Public 0.569 $4,355
Concordia University-Irvine Non-profit 0.566 $7,163
Azusa Pacific University Non-profit 0.565 $7,904
Saint Mary’s College of California Non-profit 0.557 $7,283
California Lutheran University Non-profit 0.554 $7,220
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona Public 0.553 $6,359
Charles R Drew University of Medicine and Science Non-profit 0.550 $7,547
Lytles Redwood Empire Beauty College Inc For-profit 0.544 $4,294
Newberry School of Beauty For-profit 0.543 $2,254
Laguna College of Art and Design Non-profit 0.540 $7,792
Pepperdine University Non-profit 0.530 $8,122
California State University-Long Beach Public 0.527 $5,378
Whittier College Non-profit 0.525 $6,312
University of California-Santa Barbara Public 0.521 $5,927
University of California-Santa Cruz Public 0.517 $5,615
Interior Designers Institute For-profit 0.508 $6,349
University of the Pacific Non-profit 0.508 $6,936
University of Redlands Non-profit 0.507 $6,284
Contra Costa College Public 0.496 $2,251
University of San Francisco Non-profit 0.496 $6,953
University of California-Merced Public 0.487 $3,309
University of California-Berkeley Public 0.486 $5,481
Touro University California Non-profit 0.482 $5,759
San Jose State University Public 0.473 $4,685
University of California-Irvine Public 0.472 $5,291
University of California-Los Angeles Public 0.470 $5,245
Miami Ad School-San Francisco For-profit 0.459 $6,149
Culinary Institute of America at Greystone Non-profit 0.455 $4,846
Point Loma Nazarene University Non-profit 0.449 $5,939
Los Angeles County College of Nursing and Allied Health Public 0.447 $4,607
Loyola Marymount University Non-profit 0.441 $5,641
California Career College For-profit 0.435 $4,344
Marian Health Careers Center-Los Angeles Campus For-profit 0.432 $4,024
Biola University Non-profit 0.427 $5,492
University of San Diego Non-profit 0.413 $4,836
University of California-Davis Public 0.411 $3,910
California State University Maritime Academy Public 0.404 $5,800
Loma Linda University Non-profit 0.403 $5,893
The Master’s University and Seminary Non-profit 0.399 $4,719
Bard College - MAT Program CA Non-profit 0.391 $4,743
University of Southern California Non-profit 0.375 $5,302
University of California-San Diego Public 0.364 $4,253
Gemological Institute of America-Carlsbad Non-profit 0.342 $2,250
Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey Non-profit 0.315 $2,903
Bethel Seminary-San Diego Non-profit 0.314 $4,058
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo Public 0.305 $3,740
Stanford University Non-profit 0.296 $2,210
Santa Clara University Non-profit 0.284 $3,266
Occidental College Non-profit 0.281 $2,761
Scripps College Non-profit 0.276 $2,505
Thomas Aquinas College Non-profit 0.263 $2,580
Westmont College Non-profit 0.256 $2,898
Pomona College Non-profit 0.223 $1,615
Samuel Merritt University Non-profit 0.209 $3,388
Claremont McKenna College Non-profit 0.137 $950
Harvey Mudd College Non-profit 0.100 $1,056

Table 8: Parent PLUS

California institutions by ratio of Parent PLUS borrowers’ current balance to original balance, 10 years into repayment
Institution name Control of institution Ratio of current Parent PLUS balance to original balance, 10 years into repayment Average outstanding Parent PLUS debt, 10 years into repayment
La Sierra University Non-profit 0.850 $14,979
Platt College-Los Angeles For-profit 0.805 $13,598
Saint Mary’s College of California Non-profit 0.797 $31,091
California Institute of the Arts Non-profit 0.786 $32,780
Academy of Art University For-profit 0.743 $20,864
Art Center College of Design Non-profit 0.721 $36,159
California State University-Northridge Public 0.711 $8,782
Woodbury University Non-profit 0.708 $19,291
Musicians Institute For-profit 0.706 $17,722
Marymount California University Non-profit 0.701 $10,346
FIDM-Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising-Los Angeles For-profit 0.700 $18,299
Whittier College Non-profit 0.685 $19,308
SAE Expression College For-profit 0.675 $23,761
Loyola Marymount University Non-profit 0.673 $27,648
The Master’s University and Seminary Non-profit 0.669 $15,521
University of La Verne Non-profit 0.666 $11,421
Dominican University of California Non-profit 0.663 $27,314
Vanguard University of Southern California Non-profit 0.663 $15,090
University of San Diego Non-profit 0.655 $30,724
University of Southern California Non-profit 0.653 $28,523
Otis College of Art and Design Non-profit 0.649 $15,540
California State University-East Bay Public 0.640 $8,641
Culinary Institute of America at Greystone Non-profit 0.640 $18,132
Pepperdine University Non-profit 0.633 $21,597
Bard College - MAT Program CA Non-profit 0.630 $22,415
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona Public 0.626 $8,975
California Baptist University Non-profit 0.616 $12,487
California State University-Fullerton Public 0.616 $7,811
San Joaquin Valley College-Visalia For-profit 0.613 $6,408
Menlo College Non-profit 0.613 $14,453
California State University-Fresno Public 0.610 $7,120
Notre Dame de Namur University Non-profit 0.607 $15,527
California College of the Arts Non-profit 0.606 $12,580
DeVry University-California For-profit 0.603 $9,086
California State University-San Bernardino Public 0.595 $5,694
Point Loma Nazarene University Non-profit 0.593 $16,740
Concordia University-Irvine Non-profit 0.592 $13,261
Stanford University Non-profit 0.591 $23,424
Westmont College Non-profit 0.591 $19,145
Santa Clara University Non-profit 0.572 $27,244
Summit College For-profit 0.562 $5,599
Azusa Pacific University Non-profit 0.560 $13,604
University of Redlands Non-profit 0.557 $14,257
California Lutheran University Non-profit 0.554 $9,474
San Francisco State University Public 0.553 $9,485
University of Antelope Valley For-profit 0.552 $3,436
Simpson University Non-profit 0.544 $9,942
California State University-Sacramento Public 0.540 $7,123
University of San Francisco Non-profit 0.535 $19,350
California State University-Stanislaus Public 0.530 $6,436
San Jose State University Public 0.529 $7,838
Hope International University Non-profit 0.526 $7,283
Mount Saint Mary’s University Non-profit 0.523 $6,914
California State University-Long Beach Public 0.521 $7,412
Occidental College Non-profit 0.517 $16,707
University of California-Los Angeles Public 0.516 $10,023
University of Phoenix-California For-profit 0.515 $4,204
Concorde Career College-San Diego For-profit 0.511 $4,691
Biola University Non-profit 0.510 $14,989
Universal Technical Institute of Northern California Inc For-profit 0.500 $7,593
American Career College-Ontario For-profit 0.499 $3,832
Columbia College - Los Alamitos Non-profit 0.495 $5,528
Concorde Career College-North Hollywood For-profit 0.488 $4,745
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo Public 0.487 $10,130
University of California-Merced Public 0.479 $7,054
Fresno Pacific University Non-profit 0.479 $6,879
Universal Technical Institute of California Inc For-profit 0.478 $7,760
Chapman University Non-profit 0.476 $9,501
Spartan College of Aeronautics & Technology For-profit 0.468 $5,992
Institute of Technology For-profit 0.464 $2,602
University of the Pacific Non-profit 0.462 $13,274
Concorde Career College-San Bernardino For-profit 0.445 $3,914
California State University-Channel Islands Public 0.439 $6,666
University of California-Riverside Public 0.439 $6,363
California State University-Monterey Bay Public 0.435 $5,019
Ashford University For-profit 0.432 $4,459
United Education Institute-Huntington Park Campus For-profit 0.431 $2,656
University of California-San Diego Public 0.428 $6,992
Casa Loma College-Van Nuys Non-profit 0.419 $5,426
Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey Non-profit 0.417 $12,402
San Diego State University Public 0.415 $7,108
Concorde Career College-Garden Grove For-profit 0.410 $4,799
University of California-Irvine Public 0.407 $7,898
Carrington College-Sacramento For-profit 0.407 $3,690
Sonoma State University Public 0.405 $7,534
California State University-Chico Public 0.403 $6,196
Institute for Business and Technology For-profit 0.403 $3,441
American Career College-Los Angeles For-profit 0.403 $3,353
University of California-Santa Barbara Public 0.393 $8,654
California State University Maritime Academy Public 0.387 $8,238
Milan Institute-Visalia For-profit 0.386 $1,850
Hussian College-Los Angeles For-profit 0.382 $3,360
Humboldt State University Public 0.363 $4,827
University of California-Santa Cruz Public 0.357 $7,845
Bethel Seminary-San Diego Non-profit 0.340 $7,236
Milan Institute-Palm Desert For-profit 0.315 $1,483
University of California-Berkeley Public 0.309 $6,497
University of California-Davis Public 0.296 $4,950
Milan Institute-Fresno For-profit 0.285 $1,605
CET-San Jose Non-profit 0.282 $689
Paul Mitchell the School-Costa Mesa For-profit 0.266 $2,732
Pima Medical Institute-Chula Vista For-profit 0.247 $1,356

Table 8: Grad PLUS

California institutions by ratio of Grad PLUS borrowers’ current balance to original balance, 10 years into repayment
Institution name Control of institution Ratio of current Grad PLUS balance to original balance, 10 years into repayment Average outstanding Grad PLUS debt, 10 years into repayment
Life Chiropractic College West Non-profit 1.332 $129,808
Southern California University of Health Sciences Non-profit 1.252 $116,075
American Film Institute Conservatory Non-profit 1.219 $101,362
Thomas Jefferson School of Law Non-profit 1.158 $101,082
Pacific Oaks College Non-profit 1.134 $41,115
California Western School of Law Non-profit 1.039 $94,489
California Institute of the Arts Non-profit 1.036 $52,342
La Sierra University Non-profit 1.031 $32,249
Academy of Art University For-profit 1.026 $40,002
Pacifica Graduate Institute For-profit 1.024 $43,433
Five Branches University For-profit 1.016 $76,386
DeVry University-California For-profit 1.012 $28,745
John F. Kennedy University Non-profit 0.998 $47,122
University of Phoenix-California For-profit 0.997 $22,680
Saybrook University Non-profit 0.992 $40,947
Pacific College of Health and Science For-profit 0.991 $54,627
California Baptist University Non-profit 0.990 $30,220
California State University-San Bernardino Public 0.974 $23,464
The Wright Institute Non-profit 0.972 $64,935
University of La Verne Non-profit 0.960 $31,845
San Joaquin College of Law Non-profit 0.957 $42,613
Ashford University For-profit 0.954 $18,534
Alliant International University-San Diego For-profit 0.951 $55,189
Trident University International For-profit 0.926 $14,602
Sofia University For-profit 0.922 $44,190
Los Angeles Center Non-profit 0.922 $32,120
The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Los Angeles Non-profit 0.919 $44,972
California Institute of Integral Studies Non-profit 0.919 $40,954
Pacific School of Religion Non-profit 0.917 $29,496
Trinity Law School Non-profit 0.911 $30,707
Claremont Graduate University Non-profit 0.909 $44,520
Woodbury University Non-profit 0.901 $29,744
Vanguard University of Southern California Non-profit 0.899 $20,521
Whittier College Non-profit 0.889 $47,718
Antioch University-Los Angeles Non-profit 0.889 $33,879
Southwestern Law School Non-profit 0.874 $75,095
Palo Alto University Non-profit 0.870 $69,891
Columbia College - Los Alamitos Non-profit 0.858 $14,551
Emperor’s College of Traditional Oriental Medicine For-profit 0.852 $31,489
Notre Dame de Namur University Non-profit 0.850 $27,913
National University Non-profit 0.846 $20,324
Fielding Graduate University Non-profit 0.843 $33,245
Golden Gate University-San Francisco Non-profit 0.836 $36,458
Holy Names University Non-profit 0.832 $23,619
Mills College Non-profit 0.831 $27,847
California State University-Bakersfield Public 0.815 $11,403
Hope International University Non-profit 0.803 $17,544
Humboldt State University Public 0.801 $15,691
Bard College - MAT Program CA Non-profit 0.795 $28,544
Chapman University Non-profit 0.785 $28,719
California State University-Dominguez Hills Public 0.774 $11,774
Sonoma State University Public 0.767 $21,875
San Francisco Art Institute Non-profit 0.764 $35,217
California State University-Chico Public 0.759 $13,535
Fuller Theological Seminary Non-profit 0.758 $24,597
Loyola Marymount University Non-profit 0.758 $41,751
Fresno Pacific University Non-profit 0.756 $16,667
California State University-Los Angeles Public 0.755 $10,458
Mount Saint Mary’s University Non-profit 0.753 $25,578
California State University-Northridge Public 0.753 $17,298
San Francisco State University Public 0.752 $19,519
Azusa Pacific University Non-profit 0.749 $19,415
University of Redlands Non-profit 0.747 $21,390
South Baylo University Non-profit 0.745 $20,227
University of California-Riverside Public 0.733 $18,145
California State University-San Marcos Public 0.719 $13,096
Southern California Institute of Architecture Non-profit 0.719 $47,291
Pepperdine University Non-profit 0.719 $39,666
Newschool of Architecture and Design For-profit 0.716 $34,763
California Lutheran University Non-profit 0.715 $18,440
California State University-East Bay Public 0.711 $14,311
California College of the Arts Non-profit 0.701 $29,379
University of San Diego Non-profit 0.688 $34,171
Dominican University of California Non-profit 0.675 $20,585
Point Loma Nazarene University Non-profit 0.674 $15,357
California State University-Sacramento Public 0.666 $13,777
California State University-Stanislaus Public 0.664 $11,304
San Diego State University Public 0.662 $15,983
Saint Mary’s College of California Non-profit 0.658 $20,561
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona Public 0.657 $13,139
Bethel Seminary-San Diego Non-profit 0.652 $14,280
California State University-Fresno Public 0.645 $11,437
Biola University Non-profit 0.644 $12,206
California State University-Fullerton Public 0.642 $13,485
San Francisco Conservatory of Music Non-profit 0.640 $20,884
University of California-Santa Barbara Public 0.637 $19,216
Concordia University-Irvine Non-profit 0.627 $11,382
California State University-Long Beach Public 0.621 $10,241
University of San Francisco Non-profit 0.616 $30,064
Touro University California Non-profit 0.615 $54,251
University of Southern California Non-profit 0.606 $42,397
University of California-Santa Cruz Public 0.605 $15,181
University of the Pacific Non-profit 0.593 $52,155
Samuel Merritt University Non-profit 0.590 $58,496
Loma Linda University Non-profit 0.571 $44,599
Santa Clara University Non-profit 0.567 $29,395
San Jose State University Public 0.558 $9,689
Western University of Health Sciences Non-profit 0.554 $61,978
Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey Non-profit 0.539 $16,796
University of California-Hastings College of Law Public 0.529 $35,034
University of California-Irvine Public 0.495 $20,021
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo Public 0.461 $8,182
University of California-Davis Public 0.459 $16,818
Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion-Los Angeles Non-profit 0.438 $19,165
University of California-Los Angeles Public 0.438 $19,177
Marshall B Ketchum University Non-profit 0.416 $31,177
University of California-San Diego Public 0.406 $12,403
University of California-Berkeley Public 0.364 $14,136
University of California-San Francisco Public 0.307 $15,525
Western Seminary-San Jose Non-profit 0.245 $3,382
Stanford University Non-profit 0.180 $7,184

Data Source and Notes

Data source: College Scorecard institution dataset, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Department of Education here.

Timeframe reflected: Loan balance data in this table reflect borrowers who entered repayment in either award year 2007-08 or award year 2008-09, with outstanding debt measured 10 years after entering repayment.

Notes: Ratios rounded to nearest thousandth.

Table 9 uses data on the status of borrowers three years into repayment and asks how many are in default, delinquent, or otherwise not making progress to reduce the principal of those loans. As noted above, the federal student loan payment pause and forbearance period do not affect this measure.

Here we see for-profit trade schools high on the list for Stafford loans, even though the students who attend them often have small loan amounts. At some colleges, half of all Stafford borrowers are behind on payments three years into repayment. The percentages for Parent PLUS are not as high, although some are above one-third. The colleges at the top of the list for Grad PLUS include some arts colleges and health sciences college.

Table 9: Stafford

California institutions by share of Stafford borrowers who are in default, delinquent, or not making progress three years into repayment
Institution name Control of institution Estimated share of Stafford borrowers who are in default, delinquent, or not making progress three years into repayment
Hussian College-Los Angeles For-profit 53.0%
Laurus College For-profit 52.5%
College of Marin Public 51.0%
Diversified Vocational College For-profit 51.0%
American College of Healthcare and Technology For-profit 50.5%
UEI College-Fresno For-profit 50.0%
Milan Institute of Cosmetology-Fairfield For-profit 49.0%
Associated Technical College-Los Angeles For-profit 48.5%
Los Angeles Film School For-profit 47.0%
Laney College Public 46.5%
West Hills College-Coalinga Public 46.5%
SUM Bible College and Theological Seminary Non-profit 46.5%
North Adrian’s College of Beauty Inc For-profit 46.0%
Milan Institute-Fresno For-profit 46.0%
San Joaquin Delta College Public 46.0%
Victor Valley College Public 46.0%
UEI College-Gardena For-profit 46.0%
Ashford University For-profit 46.0%
United Education Institute-Huntington Park Campus For-profit 45.0%
Cosumnes River College Public 44.5%
College of the Siskiyous Public 44.5%
Milan Institute-Palm Desert For-profit 44.5%
Santa Barbara Business College-Bakersfield For-profit 44.5%
American River College Public 44.0%
California College San Diego Non-profit 44.0%
Institute of Technology For-profit 43.0%
Antelope Valley College Public 43.0%
University of Phoenix-California For-profit 43.0%
Coastline Community College Public 42.5%
Bakersfield College Public 42.5%
City College of San Francisco Public 42.5%
Fremont College For-profit 42.5%
Sacramento City College Public 42.0%
San Joaquin Valley College-Visalia For-profit 42.0%
DeVry University-California For-profit 42.0%
Butte College Public 42.0%
Allan Hancock College Public 41.5%
Cabrillo College Public 41.5%
International School of Beauty Inc For-profit 41.5%
Reedley College Public 41.5%
Mendocino College Public 41.5%
Merritt College Public 41.5%
Monterey Peninsula College Public 41.5%
Salon Success Academy-Corona For-profit 41.5%
San Jose City College Public 41.5%
Solano Community College Public 41.5%
South Coast College For-profit 41.5%
Pacific College of Health and Science For-profit 41.5%
Folsom Lake College Public 41.5%
United States University For-profit 41.5%
SAE Expression College For-profit 41.5%
West Hills College-Lemoore Public 41.5%
Avalon School of Cosmetology-Alameda For-profit 41.0%
Feather River Community College District Public 41.0%
Paul Mitchell the School-Fresno For-profit 41.0%
Humphreys University-Stockton and Modesto Campuses Non-profit 40.5%
San Diego City College Public 40.5%
CET-San Diego Non-profit 40.0%
Los Angeles Pierce College Public 40.0%
Sierra College Public 40.0%
InterCoast Colleges-Santa Ana For-profit 40.0%
Columbia College - Los Alamitos Non-profit 39.0%
Columbia College Hollywood Non-profit 38.5%
Los Angeles Trade Technical College Public 38.5%
Shasta College Public 38.5%
Mayfield College For-profit 38.5%
Southern California Health Institute For-profit 38.5%
Universal Technical Institute of Northern California Inc For-profit 38.0%
Academy of Art University For-profit 37.0%
Los Angeles City College Public 37.0%
Carrington College-Sacramento For-profit 37.0%
Summit College For-profit 37.0%
Universal Technical Institute of California Inc For-profit 37.0%
American Career College-Ontario For-profit 37.0%
American Academy of Dramatic Arts-Los Angeles Non-profit 36.5%
California Institute of the Arts Non-profit 36.5%
College of the Canyons Public 36.5%
Chabot College Public 36.5%
Contra Costa College Public 36.5%
Fresno City College Public 36.5%
Irvine Valley College Public 36.5%
John F. Kennedy University Non-profit 36.5%
Los Angeles Valley College Public 36.5%
Los Angeles Mission College Public 36.5%
MiraCosta College Public 36.5%
Concorde Career College-San Diego For-profit 36.5%
Pasadena City College Public 36.5%
College of the Redwoods Public 36.5%
Ventura College Public 36.5%
Berkeley City College Public 36.5%
Woodbury University Non-profit 36.5%
California Healing Arts College For-profit 36.5%
Career Care Institute For-profit 36.5%
Paul Mitchell the School-Sacramento For-profit 36.5%
Aveda Institute-Los Angeles For-profit 36.5%
Bellus Academy-Chula Vista For-profit 36.0%
Fullerton College Public 36.0%
Institute for Business and Technology For-profit 36.0%
Long Beach City College Public 36.0%
Salon Success Academy-Upland For-profit 36.0%
Santa Barbara City College Public 36.0%
Antioch University-Los Angeles Non-profit 36.0%
California Aeronautical University For-profit 36.0%
Design’s School of Cosmetology For-profit 36.0%
National Career College For-profit 36.0%
Cinta Aveda Institute For-profit 36.0%
Musicians Institute For-profit 34.5%
Foothill College Public 34.5%
Marymount California University Non-profit 34.5%
Concorde Career College-San Bernardino For-profit 34.5%
New York Film Academy For-profit 34.5%
Milan Institute-Visalia For-profit 34.0%
American Career College-Los Angeles For-profit 34.0%
De Anza College Public 34.0%
Riverside City College Public 34.0%
Santa Barbara Business College-Santa Maria For-profit 34.0%
Platt College-Los Angeles For-profit 34.0%
La Sierra University Non-profit 33.0%
Citrus College Public 32.5%
East Los Angeles College Public 32.5%
San Diego Mesa College Public 32.5%
Santa Monica College Public 32.5%
Career Networks Institute For-profit 32.5%
Cerritos College Public 32.0%
San Diego Christian College Non-profit 32.0%
National University Non-profit 32.0%
West Coast Ultrasound Institute For-profit 32.0%
Trident University International For-profit 32.0%
Homestead Schools Non-profit 32.0%
Cogswell University of Silicon Valley For-profit 31.5%
Golden West College Public 31.5%
International School of Cosmetology For-profit 31.5%
Los Angeles Southwest College Public 31.5%
Moorpark College Public 31.5%
Mt San Antonio College Public 31.5%
Palomar College Public 31.5%
Santa Ana College Public 31.5%
San Diego Miramar College Public 31.5%
San Francisco Art Institute Non-profit 31.5%
College of the Sequoias Public 31.5%
Southwestern College Public 31.5%
West Los Angeles College Public 31.5%
Miami Ad School-San Francisco For-profit 31.5%
Paul Mitchell the School-Pasadena For-profit 31.5%
The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Anaheim Non-profit 31.5%
California Nurses Educational Institute For-profit 31.5%
Angeles Institute For-profit 31.5%
Paul Mitchell the School-Temecula For-profit 31.5%
Paul Mitchell the School-Modesto For-profit 31.5%
Moreno Valley College Public 31.5%
California Career Institute For-profit 31.5%
Bellus Academy-El Cajon For-profit 31.0%
Spartan College of Aeronautics & Technology For-profit 31.0%
Advanced Career Institute For-profit 31.0%
High Desert Medical College For-profit 31.0%
California Baptist University Non-profit 31.0%
Brandman University Non-profit 31.0%
Cambridge Junior College-Yuba City For-profit 31.0%
San Francisco Institute of Esthetics & Cosmetology Inc For-profit 31.0%
Santa Rosa Junior College Public 30.5%
Asher College For-profit 30.5%
Holy Names University Non-profit 30.5%
Trinity Law School Non-profit 30.5%
University of Antelope Valley For-profit 30.5%
Grossmont College Public 30.0%
University of La Verne Non-profit 30.0%
Cuesta College Public 30.0%
Cypress College Public 30.0%
FIDM-Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising-Los Angeles For-profit 30.0%
Hope International University Non-profit 30.0%
Pacific Oaks College Non-profit 30.0%
Saddleback College Public 30.0%
California State University-Bakersfield Public 29.0%
Pima Medical Institute-Chula Vista For-profit 29.0%
Humboldt State University Public 29.0%
Los Angeles Center Non-profit 29.0%
Art Center College of Design Non-profit 28.5%
MTI College For-profit 28.5%
Orange Coast College Public 28.5%
Pacific Union College Non-profit 28.5%
Concorde Career College-North Hollywood For-profit 28.5%
Whittier College Non-profit 28.5%
Bellus Academy-Poway For-profit 28.5%
Premiere Career College For-profit 28.5%
Fresno Pacific University Non-profit 28.0%
Mount Saint Mary’s University Non-profit 28.0%
National Holistic Institute For-profit 28.0%
California State University-San Bernardino Public 27.0%
California State University-Dominguez Hills Public 27.0%
Casa Loma College-Van Nuys Non-profit 27.0%
Laguna College of Art and Design Non-profit 27.0%
Otis College of Art and Design Non-profit 27.0%
University of Redlands Non-profit 27.0%
Diablo Valley College Public 26.5%
Empire College For-profit 26.5%
Federico Beauty Institute For-profit 26.5%
Glendale Community College Public 26.5%
Golden Gate University-San Francisco Non-profit 26.5%
Menlo College Non-profit 26.5%
Concorde Career College-Garden Grove For-profit 26.5%
Pacific College For-profit 26.5%
CBD College Non-profit 26.5%
NTMA Training Centers of Southern California Non-profit 26.5%
Blake Austin College For-profit 26.5%
Paul Mitchell the School-Sherman Oaks For-profit 26.5%
Paul Mitchell the School-East Bay For-profit 26.5%
California College of the Arts Non-profit 26.0%
California Hair Design Academy For-profit 26.0%
Lu Ross Academy For-profit 26.0%
Mills College Non-profit 26.0%
Notre Dame de Namur University Non-profit 26.0%
Vanguard University of Southern California Non-profit 26.0%
Chamberlain University-California For-profit 26.0%
Azusa Pacific University Non-profit 25.0%
California State University-East Bay Public 25.0%
West Coast University-Los Angeles For-profit 25.0%
Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts For-profit 25.0%
California State University-Fresno Public 24.0%
California State University-Sacramento Public 24.0%
Bard College - MAT Program CA Non-profit 24.0%
North-West College-Pomona For-profit 24.0%
San Francisco State University Public 24.0%
William Jessup University Non-profit 24.0%
California State University-Monterey Bay Public 24.0%
Culinary Institute of America at Greystone Non-profit 24.0%
California State University-Stanislaus Public 23.0%
California State University-Chico Public 23.0%
California State University-San Marcos Public 23.0%
California State University-Los Angeles Public 23.0%
Southern California Institute of Technology For-profit 22.5%
University of California-Riverside Public 22.0%
Concordia University-Irvine Non-profit 22.0%
North-West College-Van Nuys For-profit 22.0%
California State University-Channel Islands Public 22.0%
California Lutheran University Non-profit 22.0%
California State University-Northridge Public 22.0%
Glendale Career College For-profit 22.0%
North-West College-West Covina For-profit 22.0%
Career Academy of Beauty For-profit 21.5%
Life Pacific University Non-profit 21.5%
Loma Linda University Non-profit 21.5%
Palomar Institute of Cosmetology For-profit 21.5%
Central Coast College For-profit 21.5%
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona Public 21.0%
San Diego State University Public 21.0%
Sonoma State University Public 21.0%
Unitek College For-profit 21.0%
Biola University Non-profit 20.0%
California State University-Fullerton Public 20.0%
California State University-Long Beach Public 20.0%
University of California-Santa Cruz Public 20.0%
Chapman University Non-profit 20.0%
Dominican University of California Non-profit 20.0%
Simpson University Non-profit 20.0%
University of California-Merced Public 20.0%
Stanbridge University For-profit 20.0%
Pepperdine University Non-profit 20.0%
University of the Pacific Non-profit 19.0%
Point Loma Nazarene University Non-profit 19.0%
University of San Francisco Non-profit 19.0%
Saint Mary’s College of California Non-profit 19.0%
Make-up Designory For-profit 18.5%
Institute of Culinary Education For-profit 18.5%
San Jose State University Public 18.0%
Bethel Seminary-San Diego Non-profit 18.0%
Loyola Marymount University Non-profit 17.0%
California State University Maritime Academy Public 17.0%
Pitzer College Non-profit 17.0%
Brownson Technical School For-profit 16.5%
Unitek College For-profit 16.5%
University of California-Santa Barbara Public 16.0%
University of San Diego Non-profit 16.0%
University of Southern California Non-profit 16.0%
University of California-Irvine Public 15.0%
University of California-Los Angeles Public 15.0%
Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey Non-profit 13.5%
Occidental College Non-profit 13.5%
University of California-Berkeley Public 13.0%
University of California-San Diego Public 13.0%
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo Public 12.0%
University of California-Davis Public 12.0%
The Master’s University and Seminary Non-profit 11.5%
Westmont College Non-profit 11.5%
Stanford University Non-profit 11.5%
Santa Clara University Non-profit 9.0%
Harvey Mudd College Non-profit 7.5%
Samuel Merritt University Non-profit 7.5%
Associated Technical College-San Diego For-profit NA
Moler Barber College For-profit NA

Table 9: Parent PLUS

California institutions by share of Parent PLUS borrowers who are in default, delinquent, or not making progress three years into repayment
Institution name Control of institution Estimated share of Parent PLUS borrowers who are in default, delinquent, or not making progress three years into repayment
UEI College-Fresno For-profit 36.5%
Saint Mary’s College of California Non-profit 36.5%
United Education Institute-Huntington Park Campus For-profit 36.5%
Ashford University For-profit 36.5%
Los Angeles Film School For-profit 36.5%
University of Phoenix-California For-profit 35.0%
Culinary Institute of America at Greystone Non-profit 32.5%
FIDM-Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising-Los Angeles For-profit 32.0%
California College of the Arts Non-profit 31.5%
Columbia College Hollywood Non-profit 31.5%
Musicians Institute For-profit 31.5%
Notre Dame de Namur University Non-profit 31.5%
Otis College of Art and Design Non-profit 31.5%
Whittier College Non-profit 31.5%
American Career College-Ontario For-profit 31.5%
Academy of Art University For-profit 30.0%
California Baptist University Non-profit 30.0%
West Coast University-Los Angeles For-profit 30.0%
DeVry University-California For-profit 29.0%
California State University-Fullerton Public 27.0%
Concordia University-Irvine Non-profit 27.0%
Point Loma Nazarene University Non-profit 27.0%
University of Redlands Non-profit 27.0%
Santa Clara University Non-profit 27.0%
Vanguard University of Southern California Non-profit 27.0%
Woodbury University Non-profit 27.0%
University of La Verne Non-profit 26.5%
La Sierra University Non-profit 26.5%
California Lutheran University Non-profit 26.0%
University of Southern California Non-profit 25.0%
University of San Diego Non-profit 24.0%
Chamberlain University-California For-profit 24.0%
Loyola Marymount University Non-profit 23.5%
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona Public 22.0%
California State University-Chico Public 22.0%
California State University-East Bay Public 22.0%
California State University-Long Beach Public 22.0%
Humboldt State University Public 22.0%
Bethel Seminary-San Diego Non-profit 22.0%
Universal Technical Institute of California Inc For-profit 22.0%
Biola University Non-profit 22.0%
University of the Pacific Non-profit 22.0%
San Francisco State University Public 22.0%
University of San Francisco Non-profit 22.0%
San Joaquin Valley College-Visalia For-profit 22.0%
UEI College-Gardena For-profit 22.0%
Universal Technical Institute of Northern California Inc For-profit 22.0%
California State University-San Bernardino Public 21.5%
Pepperdine University Non-profit 21.5%
Make-up Designory For-profit 21.5%
American Career College-Los Angeles For-profit 20.5%
California State University-Sacramento Public 20.0%
Carrington College-Sacramento For-profit 20.0%
Pima Medical Institute-Chula Vista For-profit 20.0%
University of California-Riverside Public 19.0%
University of California-Santa Barbara Public 19.0%
University of California-Merced Public 18.0%
University of California-Los Angeles Public 18.0%
University of California-Santa Cruz Public 18.0%
Chapman University Non-profit 17.5%
California State University-Stanislaus Public 17.0%
California State University-Northridge Public 17.0%
Mount Saint Mary’s University Non-profit 17.0%
California State University-Monterey Bay Public 17.0%
California State University-Channel Islands Public 17.0%
Unitek College For-profit 17.0%
Bard College - MAT Program CA Non-profit 17.0%
Azusa Pacific University Non-profit 16.0%
San Diego State University Public 16.0%
University of California-Berkeley Public 14.0%
University of California-Irvine Public 14.0%
San Jose State University Public 14.0%
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo Public 14.0%
Sonoma State University Public 13.5%
University of California-Davis Public 13.0%
University of California-San Diego Public 12.0%

Table 9: Grad PLUS

California institutions by share of Grad PLUS borrowers who are in default, delinquent, or not making progress three years into repayment
Institution name Control of institution Estimated share of Grad PLUS borrowers who are in default, delinquent, or not making progress three years into repayment
California College of the Arts Non-profit 47.0%
Pacifica Graduate Institute For-profit 47.0%
Life Chiropractic College West Non-profit 47.0%
Southern California University of Health Sciences Non-profit 47.0%
Notre Dame de Namur University Non-profit 47.0%
Palo Alto University Non-profit 47.0%
Pacific College of Health and Science For-profit 47.0%
Ashford University For-profit 44.0%
California Baptist University Non-profit 43.0%
University of Phoenix-California For-profit 42.0%
Academy of Art University For-profit 42.0%
Azusa Pacific University Non-profit 42.0%
University of La Verne Non-profit 41.0%
University of San Francisco Non-profit 41.0%
California State University-San Bernardino Public 40.0%
DeVry University-California For-profit 40.0%
National University Non-profit 39.0%
Pepperdine University Non-profit 39.0%
Brandman University Non-profit 39.0%
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona Public 38.0%
Fresno Pacific University Non-profit 38.0%
University of Redlands Non-profit 38.0%
San Diego State University Public 38.0%
Trinity Law School Non-profit 38.0%
Columbia College - Los Alamitos Non-profit 38.0%
California State University-Long Beach Public 37.0%
California State University-Los Angeles Public 37.0%
California State University-Northridge Public 37.0%
University of California-Davis Public 37.0%
University of California-Irvine Public 37.0%
Charles R Drew University of Medicine and Science Non-profit 37.0%
Dominican University of California Non-profit 37.0%
Fielding Graduate University Non-profit 37.0%
Humboldt State University Public 37.0%
Saybrook University Non-profit 37.0%
Sonoma State University Public 37.0%
California State University-Monterey Bay Public 37.0%
Northcentral University Non-profit 37.0%
Relay Graduate School of Education - California Non-profit 36.5%
California State University-Stanislaus Public 36.0%
California State University-Sacramento Public 36.0%
Bethel Seminary-San Diego Non-profit 36.0%
Samuel Merritt University Non-profit 35.5%
California State University-East Bay Public 35.0%
San Francisco State University Public 35.0%
California State University-Fresno Public 34.0%
University of California-Los Angeles Public 33.0%
Trident University International For-profit 33.0%
San Jose State University Public 33.0%
Biola University Non-profit 32.0%
California State University-Dominguez Hills Public 32.0%
University of California-San Francisco Public 32.0%
University of California-Santa Cruz Public 32.0%
Saint Mary’s College of California Non-profit 32.0%
Marshall B Ketchum University Non-profit 32.0%
University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences For-profit 32.0%
West Coast University-Los Angeles For-profit 32.0%
Touro University Worldwide Non-profit 32.0%
University of California-San Diego Public 31.0%
University of California-Berkeley Public 30.0%
Chamberlain University-California For-profit 30.0%
California State University-Fullerton Public 29.0%
University of California-Santa Barbara Public 27.5%
Concordia University-Irvine Non-profit 27.0%
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo Public 23.5%
Stanford University Non-profit 17.0%
California Institute of Integral Studies Non-profit NA
University of California-Hastings College of Law Public NA
California Lutheran University Non-profit NA
Alliant International University-San Diego For-profit NA
California State University-Bakersfield Public NA
California State University-Chico Public NA
University of California-Riverside Public NA
California Institute of the Arts Non-profit NA
California Western School of Law Non-profit NA
Chapman University Non-profit NA
Claremont Graduate University Non-profit NA
Western University of Health Sciences Non-profit NA
Fuller Theological Seminary Non-profit NA
Golden Gate University-San Francisco Non-profit NA
Holy Names University Non-profit NA
John F. Kennedy University Non-profit NA
Loma Linda University Non-profit NA
Loyola Marymount University Non-profit NA
Mills College Non-profit NA
Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey Non-profit NA
Mount Saint Mary’s University Non-profit NA
Hope International University Non-profit NA
Pacific Oaks College Non-profit NA
University of the Pacific Non-profit NA
Point Loma Nazarene University Non-profit NA
University of San Diego Non-profit NA
Santa Clara University Non-profit NA
South Baylo University Non-profit NA
University of Southern California Non-profit NA
Southwestern Law School Non-profit NA
Whittier College Non-profit NA
Thomas Jefferson School of Law Non-profit NA
Antioch University-Los Angeles Non-profit NA
California State University-San Marcos Public NA
The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Anaheim Non-profit NA
Touro University California Non-profit NA
Bard College - MAT Program CA Non-profit NA
Los Angeles Center Non-profit NA

Data Source and Notes

Data source: College Scorecard institution dataset, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Department of Education here.

Timeframe reflected: Borrower status data reflect borrowers who entered repayment in award year 2015-16 or 2016-17, at the time when the borrower had been in repayment for three years.

Notes: I applied a threshold of minimum 200 borrowers per institution in the ten-year repayment cohort. This does not include those in forbearance or deferment. Percentages rounded to nearest 0.1%.

With Table 10, we now turn to program-level data. The College Scorecard provides debt and earnings data using an index called the Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP). CIP codes identify college programs so that when we talk about earth science programs or biostatistics programs, for example, we have a foundational basis for what programs those are. There are three levels of CIP codes with varying specificity, and the Scorecard program-level data are reported at the 4-digit CIP code level.

For this analysis, I aggregated debt and earnings data by area of study and credential level using programs at institutions located in California. I use median earnings 1 year after graduation. While Scorecard also reports earnings at the 2 year mark after graduation, breakouts by Pell are only available at 1 year. The first tab of Table 10 reflects all borrowers and the second tab reflects borrowers who received Pell at some point in their educational careers (not necessarily for the same program).

I use the ratio of debt to earnings as a barometer for how high debt is compared to earnings, an indication of how the borrower may struggle with repayment. Six of the seven programs with the highest ratios are in medicine, perhaps to little surprise. However, master’s degree programs in film/video and drama/theater are also in the top ten, and these borrowers see starting salaries of $30,000 or less alongside median debts above $100,000.

The top programs for this debt-to-earnings ratio among Pell recipients largely match the list for all borrowers. The median debt levels appear slightly higher for Pell recipients, pointing to the role that family resources likely play in financing education.

In the first tab, the first undergraduate program does not appear until 33 rows down (Bachelor’s in Arts, Entertainment, and Media Management). This is one indication of how unmanageable student loan debt can be a particularly significant issue for borrowers from graduate programs in California.

Table 10: Debt vs earnings for student loan borrowers

4-digit CIPs and award levels by debt compared to earnings in California
Area of study Credential level Estimated median debt Estimated median earnings, 1 year after completing program Ratio of debt to earnings
Chiropractic. First Professional Degree $197,802 $32,415 6.10
Osteopathic Medicine/Osteopathy. First Professional Degree $314,806 $55,654 5.66
Alternative and Complementary Medicine and Medical Systems. Master’s Degree $113,095 $22,402 5.05
Podiatric Medicine/Podiatry. First Professional Degree $238,643 $52,704 4.53
Film/Video and Photographic Arts. Master’s Degree $129,204 $30,118 4.29
Veterinary Medicine. First Professional Degree $296,776 $77,382 3.84
Dentistry. First Professional Degree $357,599 $98,283 3.64
Alternative and Complementary Medicine and Medical Systems. Doctoral Degree $122,280 $34,924 3.50
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. Master’s Degree $100,198 $29,255 3.43
Psychology, Other. Doctoral Degree $177,386 $57,067 3.11
Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology. Doctoral Degree $199,847 $64,760 3.09
Religion/Religious Studies. Doctoral Degree $105,517 $36,208 2.91
Medicine. First Professional Degree $174,170 $60,645 2.87
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other. Doctoral Degree $134,660 $48,533 2.77
Visual and Performing Arts, General. Master’s Degree $82,872 $29,959 2.77
Optometry. First Professional Degree $190,950 $72,810 2.62
Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration. Doctoral Degree $293,115 $113,547 2.58
Design and Applied Arts. Master’s Degree $108,977 $43,701 2.49
Fine and Studio Arts. Master’s Degree $75,606 $31,556 2.40
Library Science and Administration. Master’s Degree $95,603 $42,614 2.24
Advanced/Graduate Dentistry and Oral Sciences. Graduate/Professional Certificate $255,235 $114,327 2.23
Special Education and Teaching. Graduate/Professional Certificate $105,511 $48,557 2.17
Music. Master’s Degree $48,437 $23,182 2.09
Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration. First Professional Degree $217,598 $105,327 2.07
Law. First Professional Degree $157,870 $78,841 2.00
Architectural Sciences and Technology. Master’s Degree $118,023 $62,067 1.90
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. First Professional Degree $148,981 $78,557 1.90
Psychology, General. Doctoral Degree $125,376 $69,463 1.80
Music. Doctoral Degree $61,050 $36,397 1.68
Education, Other. Master’s Degree $68,798 $42,155 1.63
Drafting/Design Engineering Technologies/Technicians. Master’s Degree $94,609 $58,262 1.62
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other. Master’s Degree $74,028 $46,690 1.59
Educational/Instructional Media Design. Doctoral Degree $111,500 $74,008 1.51
Human Resources Management and Services. Doctoral Degree $124,298 $82,913 1.50
Arts, Entertainment,and Media Management. Bachelors Degree $37,061 $24,864 1.49
Dispute Resolution. Master’s Degree $60,894 $41,371 1.47
Social Work. Master’s Degree $79,646 $54,223 1.47
Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions. Master’s Degree $70,224 $47,922 1.47
Computer Software and Media Applications. Master’s Degree $77,405 $55,653 1.39
Computer Software and Media Applications. Associate’s Degree $36,632 $27,112 1.35
Teaching English or French as a Second or Foreign Language. Master’s Degree $56,188 $42,186 1.33
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions. Master’s Degree $151,933 $115,018 1.32
Legal Research and Advanced Professional Studies. Graduate/Professional Certificate $75,288 $57,225 1.32
Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology. Master’s Degree $66,466 $50,731 1.31
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. Master’s Degree $90,742 $71,234 1.27
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas. Master’s Degree $66,034 $52,140 1.27
Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies. Master’s Degree $44,760 $35,393 1.26
Behavioral Sciences. Bachelors Degree $40,191 $31,959 1.26
International Business. Master’s Degree $81,833 $65,380 1.25
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. Associate’s Degree $26,371 $21,122 1.25
Health/Medical Preparatory Programs. Graduate/Professional Certificate $27,000 $21,650 1.25
Human Services, General. Bachelors Degree $41,283 $33,116 1.25
Public Policy Analysis. Graduate/Professional Certificate $78,981 $63,791 1.24
Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Services. Master’s Degree $70,167 $56,926 1.23
Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions. Bachelors Degree $36,248 $29,411 1.23
Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology. Master’s Degree $29,916 $24,410 1.23
Legal Professions and Studies, Other. Bachelors Degree $31,417 $25,776 1.22
Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences, Other. Master’s Degree $148,099 $121,903 1.21
Gerontology. Master’s Degree $61,500 $50,914 1.21
Legal Professions and Studies, Other. Graduate/Professional Certificate $95,443 $79,420 1.20
Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and Services. Master’s Degree $68,951 $57,928 1.19
Library Science, Other. Master’s Degree $56,347 $47,582 1.18
Film/Video and Photographic Arts. Associate’s Degree $25,910 $21,945 1.18
Sustainability Studies. Bachelors Degree $20,452 $17,395 1.18
Journalism. Master’s Degree $44,618 $37,963 1.18
Alternative and Complementary Medicine and Medical Systems. Bachelors Degree $33,500 $28,875 1.16
Intercultural/Multicultural and Diversity Studies. Bachelors Degree $23,000 $20,116 1.14
Health and Medical Administrative Services. Graduate/Professional Certificate $84,134 $74,136 1.13
Library Science and Administration. Bachelors Degree $29,350 $26,165 1.12
Public Health. Master’s Degree $62,437 $55,668 1.12
Pastoral Counseling and Specialized Ministries. Master’s Degree $48,437 $43,403 1.12
Dance. Bachelors Degree $22,511 $20,220 1.11
Psychology, Other. Master’s Degree $43,975 $39,686 1.11
Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General. Master’s Degree $42,920 $39,111 1.10
Psychology, General. Master’s Degree $45,771 $41,761 1.10
Natural Sciences. Bachelors Degree $24,000 $21,994 1.09
International Relations and National Security Studies. Master’s Degree $65,817 $60,939 1.08
Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution. Master’s Degree $55,473 $52,055 1.07
Somatic Bodywork and Related Therapeutic Services. Associate’s Degree $23,937 $22,585 1.06
Bible/Biblical Studies. Bachelors Degree $26,357 $24,954 1.06
Psychology, Other. Bachelors Degree $24,080 $22,899 1.05
Bible/Biblical Studies. Master’s Degree $44,062 $42,078 1.05
Education, General. Doctoral Degree $74,380 $71,043 1.05
Theological and Ministerial Studies. Master’s Degree $45,400 $43,474 1.04
Audiovisual Communications Technologies/Technicians. Associate’s Degree $20,000 $19,200 1.04
Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication. Master’s Degree $50,837 $49,115 1.04
Health and Medical Administrative Services. Bachelors Degree $39,189 $37,971 1.03
Music. Associate’s Degree $21,003 $20,360 1.03
Public Policy Analysis. Master’s Degree $56,854 $55,744 1.02
Communication and Media Studies. Master’s Degree $59,173 $58,244 1.02
Sustainability Studies. Master’s Degree $68,368 $69,335 0.99
Drafting/Design Engineering Technologies/Technicians. Bachelors Degree $43,500 $44,238 0.98
Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services. Master’s Degree $44,464 $45,377 0.98
Music. Bachelors Degree $20,190 $20,696 0.98
Museology/Museum Studies. Master’s Degree $46,296 $47,608 0.97
Business Administration, Management and Operations. Doctoral Degree $81,803 $84,358 0.97
Alternative and Complementary Medicine and Medical Systems. First Professional Degree $32,690 $33,828 0.97
Legal Research and Advanced Professional Studies. Master’s Degree $78,879 $81,794 0.96
Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations. Master’s Degree $54,696 $56,947 0.96
Electromechanical Instrumentation and Maintenance Technologies/Technicians. Bachelors Degree $50,304 $52,602 0.96
Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences, Other. Bachelors Degree $20,479 $21,944 0.93
Graphic Communications. Bachelors Degree $28,438 $30,478 0.93
City/Urban, Community and Regional Planning. Master’s Degree $54,847 $58,798 0.93
History. Master’s Degree $31,056 $33,638 0.92
Human Resources Management and Services. Graduate/Professional Certificate $42,399 $46,095 0.92
Marketing. Graduate/Professional Certificate $104,234 $113,473 0.92
Religious Education. Bachelors Degree $24,409 $26,709 0.91
Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies, General. Bachelors Degree $32,385 $35,518 0.91
Business Administration, Management and Operations. Associate’s Degree $23,965 $26,606 0.90
Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations. Bachelors Degree $30,569 $34,205 0.89
Marketing. Master’s Degree $41,000 $45,923 0.89
Educational Administration and Supervision. Doctoral Degree $89,288 $100,655 0.89
Computer Software and Media Applications. Bachelors Degree $36,804 $41,580 0.89
Missions/Missionary Studies and Missiology. Master’s Degree $37,688 $42,597 0.88
Dispute Resolution. Graduate/Professional Certificate $60,455 $68,397 0.88
Student Counseling and Personnel Services. Master’s Degree $47,212 $53,590 0.88
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. Bachelors Degree $27,694 $31,482 0.88
Human Resources Management and Services. Bachelors Degree $40,392 $45,930 0.88
Computer Systems Analysis. Bachelors Degree $42,711 $48,575 0.88
Fishing and Fisheries Sciences and Management. Bachelors Degree $25,614 $29,135 0.88
Health and Medical Administrative Services. Associate’s Degree $26,529 $30,362 0.87
Film/Video and Photographic Arts. Bachelors Degree $23,156 $26,619 0.87
Specialized Sales, Merchandising and Marketing Operations. Bachelors Degree $38,750 $44,653 0.87
Pastoral Counseling and Specialized Ministries. Bachelors Degree $22,340 $25,871 0.86
Botany/Plant Biology. Bachelors Degree $21,500 $25,191 0.85
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. Associate’s Degree $20,000 $23,439 0.85
Education, General. Bachelors Degree $23,916 $28,081 0.85
Computer Engineering Technologies/Technicians. Bachelors Degree $45,479 $53,564 0.85
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. Bachelors Degree $19,579 $23,182 0.84
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas. Bachelors Degree $21,856 $26,197 0.83
Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications. Bachelors Degree $42,799 $51,467 0.83
Visual and Performing Arts, General. Bachelors Degree $24,317 $29,497 0.82
English Language and Literature/Letters, Other. Bachelors Degree $19,527 $23,736 0.82
Computer Programming. Bachelors Degree $42,176 $51,361 0.82
Business/Commerce, General. Master’s Degree $76,903 $93,688 0.82
Natural Resources Conservation and Research. Master’s Degree $44,573 $54,410 0.82
Theological and Ministerial Studies. Bachelors Degree $24,042 $29,366 0.82
Physiology, Pathology and Related Sciences. Bachelors Degree $18,678 $23,129 0.81
Business Administration, Management and Operations. Graduate/Professional Certificate $58,792 $72,816 0.81
Religion/Religious Studies. Bachelors Degree $20,236 $25,135 0.81
International/Global Studies. Master’s Degree $26,896 $33,510 0.80
Medical Clinical Sciences/Graduate Medical Studies. Master’s Degree $58,146 $72,506 0.80
Accounting and Related Services. Graduate/Professional Certificate $46,113 $58,051 0.79
Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management. Bachelors Degree $18,831 $23,719 0.79
Culinary Arts and Related Services. Associate’s Degree $17,292 $21,840 0.79
Social Sciences, Other. Master’s Degree $35,500 $45,696 0.78
Zoology/Animal Biology. Bachelors Degree $18,577 $23,919 0.78
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. Master’s Degree $52,004 $68,899 0.75
Real Estate Development. Master’s Degree $90,242 $119,991 0.75
Human Resources Management and Services. Master’s Degree $43,411 $57,927 0.75
Criminal Justice and Corrections. Bachelors Degree $27,177 $36,420 0.75
Business Operations Support and Assistant Services. Associate’s Degree $19,666 $26,478 0.74
Geography and Cartography. Graduate/Professional Certificate $41,000 $55,848 0.73
Fine and Studio Arts. Bachelors Degree $18,055 $24,763 0.73
Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology. Bachelors Degree $21,493 $29,484 0.73
Biological and Physical Sciences. Master’s Degree $50,500 $69,968 0.72
Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs, Other. Bachelors Degree $24,132 $33,991 0.71
English Language and Literature, General. Bachelors Degree $18,995 $26,793 0.71
Criminal Justice and Corrections. Master’s Degree $36,794 $52,003 0.71
Electrical Engineering Technologies/Technicians. Bachelors Degree $43,022 $60,996 0.71
Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services, Other. Bachelors Degree $28,720 $40,901 0.70
Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies. Bachelors Degree $18,493 $26,389 0.70
Philosophy and Religious Studies, Other. Master’s Degree $42,853 $61,522 0.70
Public Policy Analysis. Bachelors Degree $19,487 $28,053 0.69
Biology, General. Master’s Degree $24,372 $35,103 0.69
Education, General. Graduate/Professional Certificate $33,967 $49,065 0.69
Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services. Bachelors Degree $20,737 $30,453 0.68
Special Education and Teaching. Master’s Degree $41,356 $60,766 0.68
Design and Applied Arts. Bachelors Degree $23,989 $35,279 0.68
Criminal Justice and Corrections. Associate’s Degree $18,976 $27,937 0.68
Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications. Associate’s Degree $27,625 $41,145 0.67
Finance and Financial Management Services. Master’s Degree $41,169 $61,532 0.67
Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology. Bachelors Degree $18,011 $26,945 0.67
Accounting and Related Services. Master’s Degree $38,121 $57,167 0.67
Health and Medical Administrative Services. Master’s Degree $41,516 $62,282 0.67
English Language and Literature, General. Master’s Degree $31,037 $46,873 0.66
Marketing. Associate’s Degree $18,633 $28,231 0.66
Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education. Master’s Degree $30,609 $46,572 0.66
Health and Physical Education/Fitness. Bachelors Degree $17,781 $27,059 0.66
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. Master’s Degree $32,524 $49,522 0.66
Management Information Systems and Services. Master’s Degree $42,807 $65,768 0.65
Business/Commerce, General. Bachelors Degree $31,693 $48,840 0.65
Education, General. Master’s Degree $35,581 $54,989 0.65
Design and Applied Arts. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $35,500 $54,897 0.65
Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology. Graduate/Professional Certificate $35,222 $54,803 0.64
Biomedical/Medical Engineering. Master’s Degree $52,033 $81,106 0.64
Biology, General. Bachelors Degree $18,139 $28,321 0.64
Accounting and Related Services. Bachelors Degree $32,324 $50,730 0.64
Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services. Associate’s Degree $22,424 $35,286 0.64
Business Administration, Management and Operations. Master’s Degree $46,861 $73,964 0.63
Construction Management. Master’s Degree $34,167 $54,148 0.63
Apparel and Textiles. Associate’s Degree $14,000 $22,239 0.63
Psychology, General. Bachelors Degree $17,751 $28,205 0.63
Social Sciences, General. Bachelors Degree $18,619 $29,593 0.63
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. Bachelors Degree $16,789 $26,716 0.63
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. Bachelors Degree $33,621 $53,689 0.63
Health and Physical Education/Fitness. Master’s Degree $30,640 $49,534 0.62
Anthropology. Bachelors Degree $16,667 $27,034 0.62
Public Administration. Master’s Degree $38,754 $63,269 0.61
Criminology. Master’s Degree $34,500 $56,448 0.61
Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and Services. Bachelors Degree $15,982 $26,150 0.61
Journalism. Bachelors Degree $19,600 $32,235 0.61
History. Bachelors Degree $16,370 $26,927 0.61
Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications. Master’s Degree $41,749 $68,726 0.61
Geography and Cartography. Master’s Degree $35,909 $59,703 0.60
Neurobiology and Neurosciences. Bachelors Degree $16,418 $27,374 0.60
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities. Bachelors Degree $17,021 $28,442 0.60
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. Graduate/Professional Certificate $66,875 $111,802 0.60
Radio, Television, and Digital Communication. Bachelors Degree $15,996 $26,843 0.60
Business/Managerial Economics. Master’s Degree $41,000 $68,948 0.59
Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies. Bachelors Degree $16,608 $28,089 0.59
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. Associate’s Degree $21,011 $35,644 0.59
Architectural Sciences and Technology. Bachelors Degree $31,198 $53,003 0.59
Forestry. Bachelors Degree $22,884 $38,984 0.59
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. Master’s Degree $64,289 $110,032 0.58
Computer and Information Sciences, General. Bachelors Degree $29,576 $51,002 0.58
Management Information Systems and Services. Bachelors Degree $33,233 $57,558 0.58
Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications. Graduate/Professional Certificate $35,319 $61,444 0.57
Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research. Master’s Degree $30,726 $53,511 0.57
Natural Resources Conservation and Research. Bachelors Degree $19,764 $34,496 0.57
Business Administration, Management and Operations. Bachelors Degree $26,856 $47,034 0.57
Electrical Engineering Technologies/Technicians. Associate’s Degree $27,137 $48,281 0.56
Gerontology. Bachelors Degree $18,000 $32,043 0.56
Apparel and Textiles. Bachelors Degree $19,547 $34,936 0.56
Area Studies. Bachelors Degree $16,502 $29,738 0.55
Marketing. Bachelors Degree $24,771 $44,954 0.55
Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration. Bachelors Degree $14,630 $26,801 0.55
Animal Sciences. Bachelors Degree $16,499 $30,333 0.54
Marine Sciences. Bachelors Degree $15,000 $27,607 0.54
Nutrition Sciences. Bachelors Degree $16,104 $29,701 0.54
Criminology. Bachelors Degree $16,317 $30,125 0.54
Homeland Security. Bachelors Degree $30,035 $55,506 0.54
Communications Technologies/Technicians and Support Services, Other. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,500 $17,583 0.54
Design and Applied Arts. Associate’s Degree $13,517 $25,118 0.54
Architecture. Bachelors Degree $28,495 $52,960 0.54
Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences. Bachelors Degree $19,323 $35,986 0.54
Research and Experimental Psychology. Bachelors Degree $14,916 $28,013 0.53
Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication. Bachelors Degree $22,994 $43,329 0.53
Real Estate. Bachelors Degree $27,426 $52,087 0.53
Community Organization and Advocacy. Bachelors Degree $15,500 $29,789 0.52
Public Health. Bachelors Degree $17,366 $33,415 0.52
Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General. Associate’s Degree $14,708 $28,354 0.52
Philosophy. Bachelors Degree $14,474 $27,980 0.52
Medical Illustration and Informatics. Master’s Degree $42,418 $82,562 0.51
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. Doctoral Degree $65,057 $127,406 0.51
Education, Other. Bachelors Degree $15,345 $30,244 0.51
Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics. Bachelors Degree $14,857 $29,342 0.51
Public Administration. Bachelors Degree $21,821 $43,123 0.51
Computer and Information Sciences, General. Master’s Degree $35,256 $69,966 0.50
Political Science and Government. Bachelors Degree $16,534 $32,881 0.50
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. Doctoral Degree $28,655 $57,044 0.50
Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences, General. Bachelors Degree $15,370 $30,681 0.50
Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology. Bachelors Degree $16,500 $32,988 0.50
Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR). Associate’s Degree $18,083 $36,355 0.50
Sociology. Bachelors Degree $15,354 $30,956 0.50
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $18,058 $36,427 0.50
Taxation. Master’s Degree $42,359 $85,559 0.50
Business/Corporate Communications. Bachelors Degree $20,144 $40,837 0.49
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. Associate’s Degree $8,639 $17,536 0.49
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other. Bachelors Degree $16,013 $32,941 0.49
Educational/Instructional Media Design. Bachelors Degree $28,906 $59,651 0.48
Social Sciences, General. Associate’s Degree $11,300 $23,347 0.48
Natural Resources Management and Policy. Bachelors Degree $15,000 $31,009 0.48
Parks, Recreation and Leisure Studies. Bachelors Degree $17,032 $35,228 0.48
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions. Associate’s Degree $23,842 $49,512 0.48
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. Master’s Degree $37,250 $77,429 0.48
Cell/Cellular Biology and Anatomical Sciences. Bachelors Degree $15,559 $32,484 0.48
Film/Video and Photographic Arts. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,450 $19,754 0.48
Biotechnology. Master’s Degree $36,831 $77,178 0.48
Homeland Security. Master’s Degree $29,342 $61,606 0.48
Non-Professional General Legal Studies (Undergraduate). Bachelors Degree $18,169 $38,279 0.47
Communication and Media Studies. Bachelors Degree $17,252 $36,454 0.47
Agricultural Production Operations. Bachelors Degree $17,660 $37,494 0.47
Physics. Bachelors Degree $18,159 $38,882 0.47
Landscape Architecture. Bachelors Degree $20,981 $44,961 0.47
Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants. Associate’s Degree $20,478 $43,927 0.47
Agriculture, General. Bachelors Degree $21,903 $47,178 0.46
Mechanical Engineering. Master’s Degree $45,120 $97,259 0.46
Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $8,161 $17,608 0.46
Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General. Bachelors Degree $17,026 $36,753 0.46
Veterinary Biomedical and Clinical Sciences. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,500 $20,662 0.46
International Business. Bachelors Degree $21,111 $46,157 0.46
Business Operations Support and Assistant Services. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,342 $20,466 0.46
Social Work. Bachelors Degree $15,599 $34,183 0.46
Microbiological Sciences and Immunology. Bachelors Degree $15,447 $33,884 0.46
Engineering-Related Fields. Bachelors Degree $26,960 $59,492 0.45
Computer and Information Sciences, General. Associate’s Degree $19,000 $42,317 0.45
International Relations and National Security Studies. Bachelors Degree $15,770 $35,375 0.45
Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering. Master’s Degree $44,168 $99,666 0.44
Somatic Bodywork and Related Therapeutic Services. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,406 $21,261 0.44
Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies. Associate’s Degree $17,561 $39,700 0.44
Chemistry. Bachelors Degree $16,773 $38,354 0.44
Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering. Bachelors Degree $22,711 $52,053 0.44
Mathematics. Bachelors Degree $15,953 $36,612 0.44
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. Bachelors Degree $12,415 $28,819 0.43
Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $15,300 $35,815 0.43
Finance and Financial Management Services. Bachelors Degree $22,550 $53,026 0.43
Urban Studies/Affairs. Bachelors Degree $16,104 $38,026 0.42
Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians. Bachelors Degree $31,152 $74,199 0.42
Legal Support Services. Graduate/Professional Certificate $18,090 $43,136 0.42
Graphic Communications. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $28,332 $67,897 0.42
International/Global Studies. Bachelors Degree $15,138 $36,315 0.42
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods. Master’s Degree $41,797 $100,525 0.42
Educational Administration and Supervision. Master’s Degree $28,975 $70,136 0.41
Dental Support Services and Allied Professions. Associate’s Degree $27,323 $66,175 0.41
Electrical/Electronics Maintenance and Repair Technology. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,500 $23,252 0.41
Pharmacology and Toxicology. Bachelors Degree $17,718 $43,438 0.41
East Asian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics. Bachelors Degree $13,365 $32,900 0.41
Hospitality Administration/Management. Bachelors Degree $15,554 $38,358 0.41
Theology and Religious Vocations, Other. Master’s Degree $17,983 $44,388 0.41
Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology. Bachelors Degree $19,600 $48,470 0.40
Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution. Bachelors Degree $14,910 $37,358 0.40
Dental Support Services and Allied Professions. Bachelors Degree $28,046 $70,289 0.40
Dental Support Services and Allied Professions. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,144 $22,948 0.40
Manufacturing Engineering. Bachelors Degree $25,401 $63,805 0.40
Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $17,387 $43,682 0.40
Health and Physical Education/Fitness. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,500 $23,937 0.40
Specialized Sales, Merchandising and Marketing Operations. Associate’s Degree $12,000 $30,281 0.40
Genetics. Bachelors Degree $13,000 $33,038 0.39
Movement and Mind-Body Therapies and Education. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,500 $24,397 0.39
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $5,500 $14,186 0.39
Criminal Justice and Corrections. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,311 $24,141 0.39
Accounting and Related Services. Associate’s Degree $13,194 $34,285 0.38
Human Biology. Bachelors Degree $13,046 $33,962 0.38
Food Science and Technology. Bachelors Degree $16,815 $43,998 0.38
Computer Science. Master’s Degree $38,591 $101,195 0.38
Biomedical/Medical Engineering. Bachelors Degree $19,442 $51,324 0.38
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions. Bachelors Degree $22,198 $59,024 0.38
Biotechnology. Bachelors Degree $14,256 $38,123 0.37
Health and Medical Administrative Services. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,156 $24,557 0.37
Curriculum and Instruction. Master’s Degree $28,041 $75,979 0.37
Geography and Cartography. Bachelors Degree $13,180 $36,455 0.36
Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $8,896 $24,713 0.36
Marine Transportation. Bachelors Degree $26,949 $75,128 0.36
Cognitive Science. Bachelors Degree $16,296 $45,972 0.35
Business/Managerial Economics. Bachelors Degree $16,174 $45,957 0.35
Public Administration and Social Service Professions, Other. Master’s Degree $47,500 $135,775 0.35
Civil Engineering. Master’s Degree $26,431 $76,467 0.35
Plant Sciences. Bachelors Degree $16,538 $47,950 0.34
Marketing. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $14,068 $40,811 0.34
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions. Bachelors Degree $22,822 $67,126 0.34
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods. Bachelors Degree $17,476 $51,552 0.34
Agricultural Business and Management. Bachelors Degree $16,016 $47,312 0.34
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities. Associate’s Degree $9,231 $27,308 0.34
Statistics. Bachelors Degree $17,184 $50,897 0.34
Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering. Bachelors Degree $22,038 $65,371 0.34
City/Urban, Community and Regional Planning. Bachelors Degree $15,900 $48,123 0.33
Construction Management. Associate’s Degree $19,697 $59,937 0.33
Health Aides/Attendants/Orderlies. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,000 $27,488 0.33
Industrial Engineering. Bachelors Degree $22,473 $69,039 0.33
Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering. Master’s Degree $34,195 $107,333 0.32
Social Sciences, Other. Bachelors Degree $15,681 $49,557 0.32
Ophthalmic and Optometric Support Services and Allied Professions. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,500 $30,030 0.32
Architectural Engineering. Bachelors Degree $21,889 $69,509 0.31
Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians. Bachelors Degree $16,233 $51,672 0.31
Chemical Engineering. Bachelors Degree $17,628 $56,125 0.31
Economics. Bachelors Degree $15,261 $48,718 0.31
Engineering, Other. Bachelors Degree $18,233 $58,406 0.31
Health and Physical Education/Fitness. Associate’s Degree $10,625 $35,837 0.30
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. Bachelors Degree $23,996 $81,480 0.29
Biological and Physical Sciences. Associate’s Degree $8,000 $27,551 0.29
Mechanical Engineering. Bachelors Degree $18,502 $64,449 0.29
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. First Professional Degree $30,096 $105,127 0.29
Civil Engineering. Bachelors Degree $18,304 $64,467 0.28
Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR). Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,425 $33,346 0.28
Computer Engineering. Master’s Degree $27,759 $99,985 0.28
Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering. Master’s Degree $21,947 $80,029 0.27
Real Estate Development. Bachelors Degree $16,500 $60,983 0.27
Culinary Arts and Related Services. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $7,403 $27,636 0.27
Educational/Instructional Media Design. Master’s Degree $20,954 $78,439 0.27
Applied Mathematics. Bachelors Degree $14,487 $54,522 0.27
Electrical and Power Transmission Installers. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,645 $36,684 0.26
Construction Management. Bachelors Degree $21,980 $83,616 0.26
Computer Engineering. Bachelors Degree $19,442 $74,272 0.26
Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering. Bachelors Degree $19,720 $75,462 0.26
Mathematics and Computer Science. Bachelors Degree $18,820 $73,666 0.26
Fire Protection. Bachelors Degree $10,738 $43,069 0.25
Fine and Studio Arts. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $8,233 $34,031 0.24
Materials Engineering Bachelors Degree $14,252 $59,434 0.24
Building/Construction Finishing, Management, and Inspection. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $6,051 $25,247 0.24
Precision Metal Working. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $8,042 $33,614 0.24
Agricultural Engineering. Bachelors Degree $16,114 $67,924 0.24
Computer Science. Bachelors Degree $17,110 $72,313 0.24
Computer Systems Analysis. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $8,816 $37,997 0.23
Biological/Biosystems Engineering. Bachelors Degree $14,933 $64,592 0.23
Construction Engineering Technologies. Bachelors Degree $18,206 $78,881 0.23
Accounting and Related Services. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $4,954 $21,607 0.23
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $8,433 $38,351 0.22
Computer and Information Sciences, General. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $8,866 $40,790 0.22
Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $12,503 $58,925 0.21
Engineering, General. Bachelors Degree $16,228 $76,919 0.21
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. Associate’s Degree $16,902 $80,397 0.21
Electromechanical Instrumentation and Maintenance Technologies/Technicians. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,500 $45,872 0.21
Heavy/Industrial Equipment Maintenance Technologies. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,500 $48,389 0.20
Human Resources Management and Services. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $7,553 $40,140 0.19
Ground Transportation. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $6,345 $35,198 0.18
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $4,450 $28,136 0.16
Computer Programming. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $7,125 $47,265 0.15
Business Administration, Management and Operations. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $7,125 $52,726 0.14

Table 10: Debt vs earnings for for student loan borrowers who received Pell

4-digit CIPs and award levels by debt compared to earnings in California
Area of study Credential level Estimated median debt for Pell recipients Estimated median earnings for Pell recipeints, 1 year after completing program Ratio of debt to earnings for Pell recipients
Chiropractic. First Professional Degree $204,715 $30,019 6.82
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. Master’s Degree $96,676 $15,819 6.11
Osteopathic Medicine/Osteopathy. First Professional Degree $327,955 $55,045 5.96
Podiatric Medicine/Podiatry. First Professional Degree $249,482 $52,227 4.78
Film/Video and Photographic Arts. Master’s Degree $145,159 $31,825 4.56
Alternative and Complementary Medicine and Medical Systems. Master’s Degree $116,022 $25,624 4.53
Dentistry. First Professional Degree $370,510 $94,953 3.90
Veterinary Medicine. First Professional Degree $307,253 $79,815 3.85
Psychology, Other. Doctoral Degree $225,019 $59,706 3.77
Music. Master’s Degree $63,826 $17,438 3.66
Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology. Doctoral Degree $216,971 $66,105 3.28
Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General. Master’s Degree $51,041 $17,570 2.91
Medicine. First Professional Degree $164,927 $59,880 2.75
Optometry. First Professional Degree $204,707 $77,181 2.65
Law. First Professional Degree $173,799 $74,066 2.35
Fine and Studio Arts. Master’s Degree $95,494 $41,184 2.32
Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration. First Professional Degree $225,644 $107,650 2.10
Arts, Entertainment,and Media Management. Bachelors Degree $43,000 $20,938 2.05
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. First Professional Degree $157,023 $78,041 2.01
Special Education and Teaching. Graduate/Professional Certificate $108,142 $54,246 1.99
Education, Other. Master’s Degree $68,994 $37,401 1.84
Drafting/Design Engineering Technologies/Technicians. Master’s Degree $102,200 $58,832 1.74
Computer Software and Media Applications. Master’s Degree $80,819 $46,756 1.73
Public Policy Analysis. Master’s Degree $88,245 $54,177 1.63
Social Work. Master’s Degree $86,780 $53,996 1.61
Legal Professions and Studies, Other. Graduate/Professional Certificate $114,543 $75,745 1.51
Gerontology. Master’s Degree $73,679 $51,568 1.43
Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions. Master’s Degree $68,317 $48,608 1.41
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. Master’s Degree $99,661 $71,878 1.39
Human Services, General. Bachelors Degree $43,873 $32,618 1.35
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions. Master’s Degree $169,109 $125,795 1.34
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas. Master’s Degree $70,052 $52,250 1.34
Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology. Master’s Degree $67,516 $50,606 1.33
Intercultural/Multicultural and Diversity Studies. Bachelors Degree $24,416 $18,325 1.33
Behavioral Sciences. Bachelors Degree $40,639 $31,476 1.29
Alternative and Complementary Medicine and Medical Systems. Bachelors Degree $32,875 $25,487 1.29
Computer Software and Media Applications. Bachelors Degree $42,574 $33,172 1.28
Communication and Media Studies. Master’s Degree $77,014 $60,222 1.28
Teaching English or French as a Second or Foreign Language. Master’s Degree $63,446 $49,924 1.27
Health and Medical Administrative Services. Graduate/Professional Certificate $91,971 $74,184 1.24
Alternative and Complementary Medicine and Medical Systems. First Professional Degree $32,690 $26,641 1.23
International Relations and National Security Studies. Master’s Degree $71,049 $58,490 1.21
Film/Video and Photographic Arts. Associate’s Degree $20,000 $16,487 1.21
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions. Bachelors Degree $26,240 $21,679 1.21
Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations. Master’s Degree $74,851 $62,164 1.20
Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Services. Master’s Degree $67,756 $56,299 1.20
Education, General. Doctoral Degree $78,186 $66,957 1.17
Psychology, General. Master’s Degree $44,218 $38,284 1.15
Theological and Ministerial Studies. Master’s Degree $50,708 $43,966 1.15
Business/Commerce, General. Master’s Degree $114,098 $99,142 1.15
Public Health. Master’s Degree $62,976 $55,007 1.14
Audiovisual Communications Technologies/Technicians. Associate’s Degree $21,638 $18,949 1.14
Educational Administration and Supervision. Doctoral Degree $114,675 $100,453 1.14
Psychology, General. Doctoral Degree $79,161 $69,758 1.13
Music. Bachelors Degree $20,772 $18,503 1.12
Accounting and Related Services. Graduate/Professional Certificate $54,085 $48,446 1.12
Music. Associate’s Degree $22,285 $20,102 1.11
Business Administration, Management and Operations. Doctoral Degree $89,221 $81,024 1.10
Psychology, Other. Master’s Degree $42,017 $38,225 1.10
Library Science, Other. Master’s Degree $50,746 $46,375 1.09
Health and Medical Administrative Services. Bachelors Degree $39,705 $36,825 1.08
Biology, General. Master’s Degree $30,725 $28,509 1.08
Drafting/Design Engineering Technologies/Technicians. Bachelors Degree $45,000 $41,901 1.07
Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services. Master’s Degree $48,967 $48,148 1.02
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. Bachelors Degree $31,326 $31,517 0.99
Film/Video and Photographic Arts. Bachelors Degree $26,096 $26,275 0.99
Graphic Communications. Bachelors Degree $32,285 $32,582 0.99
City/Urban, Community and Regional Planning. Master’s Degree $62,064 $62,662 0.99
Marketing. Master’s Degree $41,000 $42,151 0.97
Computer Systems Analysis. Bachelors Degree $43,659 $45,607 0.96
Human Resources Management and Services. Bachelors Degree $41,604 $44,427 0.94
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. Bachelors Degree $21,305 $23,184 0.92
Health and Medical Administrative Services. Associate’s Degree $29,156 $32,135 0.91
Missions/Missionary Studies and Missiology. Master’s Degree $41,000 $45,849 0.89
Business Administration, Management and Operations. Graduate/Professional Certificate $62,353 $70,033 0.89
Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications. Bachelors Degree $43,630 $49,057 0.89
Education, General. Bachelors Degree $24,985 $28,093 0.89
Human Resources Management and Services. Master’s Degree $44,085 $51,381 0.86
Social Sciences, Other. Master’s Degree $37,229 $44,271 0.84
Special Education and Teaching. Master’s Degree $46,369 $55,159 0.84
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas. Bachelors Degree $21,814 $26,033 0.84
Biological and Physical Sciences. Master’s Degree $60,286 $74,219 0.81
Health and Medical Administrative Services. Master’s Degree $41,403 $51,466 0.80
Student Counseling and Personnel Services. Master’s Degree $44,152 $55,513 0.80
Computer and Information Sciences, General. Master’s Degree $38,634 $48,868 0.79
Criminal Justice and Corrections. Bachelors Degree $28,093 $36,027 0.78
Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management. Bachelors Degree $18,437 $23,695 0.78
Criminal Justice and Corrections. Master’s Degree $34,924 $45,029 0.78
Finance and Financial Management Services. Master’s Degree $41,000 $52,965 0.77
Electrical Engineering Technologies/Technicians. Bachelors Degree $46,402 $60,030 0.77
Visual and Performing Arts, General. Bachelors Degree $27,000 $35,404 0.76
Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services, Other. Bachelors Degree $31,000 $41,064 0.75
Education, General. Master’s Degree $38,520 $51,479 0.75
English Language and Literature, General. Bachelors Degree $19,169 $26,403 0.73
Accounting and Related Services. Bachelors Degree $34,822 $48,174 0.72
Accounting and Related Services. Master’s Degree $38,522 $53,498 0.72
Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications. Associate’s Degree $28,698 $39,992 0.72
Design and Applied Arts. Bachelors Degree $25,429 $35,473 0.72
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. Bachelors Degree $35,433 $49,592 0.71
Criminology. Master’s Degree $40,062 $56,830 0.70
Business Administration, Management and Operations. Master’s Degree $45,075 $64,036 0.70
Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology. Bachelors Degree $17,730 $25,510 0.70
Computer and Information Sciences, General. Bachelors Degree $33,021 $47,547 0.69
Fine and Studio Arts. Bachelors Degree $16,666 $24,161 0.69
Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology. Graduate/Professional Certificate $35,981 $53,453 0.67
Management Information Systems and Services. Master’s Degree $43,089 $64,150 0.67
Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services. Associate’s Degree $22,446 $33,545 0.67
Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications. Master’s Degree $41,749 $63,139 0.66
Social Sciences, General. Bachelors Degree $17,279 $26,350 0.66
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. Master’s Degree $32,629 $49,878 0.65
Physiology, Pathology and Related Sciences. Bachelors Degree $13,983 $21,563 0.65
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods. Master’s Degree $58,544 $91,346 0.64
Business/Commerce, General. Bachelors Degree $30,162 $47,360 0.64
Health and Physical Education/Fitness. Master’s Degree $32,556 $51,829 0.63
Public Administration. Master’s Degree $38,690 $61,742 0.63
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. Master’s Degree $66,695 $107,227 0.62
Business Administration, Management and Operations. Bachelors Degree $27,695 $44,725 0.62
Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and Services. Bachelors Degree $16,338 $26,407 0.62
Neurobiology and Neurosciences. Bachelors Degree $16,223 $26,445 0.61
Natural Resources Conservation and Research. Bachelors Degree $21,259 $34,768 0.61
Health and Physical Education/Fitness. Bachelors Degree $16,318 $26,766 0.61
Psychology, General. Bachelors Degree $16,843 $27,724 0.61
Marketing. Bachelors Degree $24,947 $41,449 0.60
Biology, General. Bachelors Degree $16,941 $28,369 0.60
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. Master’s Degree $40,888 $68,499 0.60
Marine Sciences. Bachelors Degree $16,500 $27,985 0.59
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities. Bachelors Degree $16,306 $27,768 0.59
Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology. Bachelors Degree $17,059 $29,158 0.59
Design and Applied Arts. Associate’s Degree $14,000 $24,021 0.58
History. Bachelors Degree $15,467 $26,818 0.58
Anthropology. Bachelors Degree $16,146 $28,033 0.58
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. Bachelors Degree $15,006 $26,129 0.57
Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services. Bachelors Degree $17,545 $30,933 0.57
Radio, Television, and Digital Communication. Bachelors Degree $15,094 $26,750 0.56
Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research. Master’s Degree $30,726 $54,466 0.56
Electrical Engineering Technologies/Technicians. Associate’s Degree $25,497 $45,380 0.56
Apparel and Textiles. Associate’s Degree $16,000 $28,589 0.56
Philosophy. Bachelors Degree $14,059 $25,364 0.55
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. Associate’s Degree $9,500 $17,245 0.55
Human Biology. Bachelors Degree $14,750 $27,145 0.54
Criminology. Bachelors Degree $15,722 $29,186 0.54
Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication. Bachelors Degree $22,580 $41,924 0.54
Mathematics. Bachelors Degree $17,440 $32,464 0.54
Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies. Bachelors Degree $15,945 $29,750 0.54
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions. Associate’s Degree $24,788 $47,238 0.52
Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration. Bachelors Degree $13,441 $25,712 0.52
Journalism. Bachelors Degree $16,414 $31,576 0.52
Animal Sciences. Bachelors Degree $15,565 $30,134 0.52
Social Work. Bachelors Degree $17,150 $33,525 0.51
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. Master’s Degree $37,950 $74,997 0.51
Taxation. Master’s Degree $41,000 $81,259 0.50
Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology. Bachelors Degree $16,230 $32,176 0.50
Computer and Information Sciences, General. Associate’s Degree $19,498 $38,918 0.50
Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences, General. Bachelors Degree $14,807 $29,624 0.50
Research and Experimental Psychology. Bachelors Degree $13,970 $27,989 0.50
Political Science and Government. Bachelors Degree $16,061 $32,291 0.50
Parks, Recreation and Leisure Studies. Bachelors Degree $17,025 $34,279 0.50
Dental Support Services and Allied Professions. Associate’s Degree $31,000 $62,607 0.50
Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $17,264 $35,223 0.49
Business/Corporate Communications. Bachelors Degree $21,000 $43,283 0.49
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other. Bachelors Degree $14,688 $30,300 0.48
Film/Video and Photographic Arts. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,500 $19,748 0.48
Finance and Financial Management Services. Bachelors Degree $23,587 $49,287 0.48
Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies. Associate’s Degree $18,312 $38,296 0.48
Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $8,347 $17,525 0.48
Area Studies. Bachelors Degree $15,331 $32,456 0.47
Public Administration. Bachelors Degree $15,748 $33,449 0.47
Communication and Media Studies. Bachelors Degree $16,670 $35,643 0.47
Nutrition Sciences. Bachelors Degree $13,891 $29,771 0.47
Natural Resources Management and Policy. Bachelors Degree $15,560 $33,388 0.47
Agricultural Production Operations. Bachelors Degree $19,666 $42,290 0.47
Education, Other. Bachelors Degree $15,500 $33,558 0.46
Sociology. Bachelors Degree $14,128 $30,702 0.46
Cell/Cellular Biology and Anatomical Sciences. Bachelors Degree $15,236 $33,259 0.46
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $5,500 $12,173 0.45
Architecture. Bachelors Degree $25,127 $55,669 0.45
Educational Administration and Supervision. Master’s Degree $30,206 $67,874 0.45
Somatic Bodywork and Related Therapeutic Services. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,737 $21,911 0.44
English Language and Literature, General. Master’s Degree $28,854 $65,319 0.44
Microbiological Sciences and Immunology. Bachelors Degree $12,282 $28,339 0.43
Non-Professional General Legal Studies (Undergraduate). Bachelors Degree $16,470 $38,030 0.43
Public Health. Bachelors Degree $14,139 $33,138 0.43
Physics. Bachelors Degree $16,767 $39,369 0.43
Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General. Bachelors Degree $15,518 $36,806 0.42
International/Global Studies. Bachelors Degree $15,171 $36,555 0.42
Movement and Mind-Body Therapies and Education. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,500 $22,920 0.41
Legal Support Services. Graduate/Professional Certificate $17,018 $41,256 0.41
Dental Support Services and Allied Professions. Bachelors Degree $30,066 $73,069 0.41
Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology. Bachelors Degree $19,600 $47,774 0.41
Specialized Sales, Merchandising and Marketing Operations. Associate’s Degree $12,064 $29,623 0.41
Electrical/Electronics Maintenance and Repair Technology. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,500 $23,815 0.40
Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants. Associate’s Degree $19,393 $48,712 0.40
Genetics. Bachelors Degree $12,333 $31,181 0.40
Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $17,293 $44,099 0.39
Dental Support Services and Allied Professions. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,181 $23,472 0.39
Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics. Bachelors Degree $13,186 $33,716 0.39
Chemistry. Bachelors Degree $15,007 $38,391 0.39
International Business. Bachelors Degree $16,441 $42,755 0.38
Marine Transportation. Bachelors Degree $28,000 $72,869 0.38
Health and Medical Administrative Services. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,269 $24,624 0.38
Apparel and Textiles. Bachelors Degree $13,000 $34,761 0.37
Hospitality Administration/Management. Bachelors Degree $14,216 $38,042 0.37
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods. Bachelors Degree $16,333 $43,824 0.37
Curriculum and Instruction. Master’s Degree $27,061 $72,941 0.37
Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,071 $24,545 0.37
International Relations and National Security Studies. Bachelors Degree $13,623 $37,361 0.36
Engineering, Other. Bachelors Degree $20,200 $55,946 0.36
Geography and Cartography. Bachelors Degree $13,000 $36,401 0.36
Cognitive Science. Bachelors Degree $16,452 $46,920 0.35
Plant Sciences. Bachelors Degree $17,500 $50,477 0.35
Food Science and Technology. Bachelors Degree $12,712 $36,898 0.34
Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering. Bachelors Degree $21,160 $61,876 0.34
Chemical Engineering. Bachelors Degree $17,777 $52,697 0.34
Biomedical/Medical Engineering. Bachelors Degree $17,559 $52,552 0.33
Business/Managerial Economics. Bachelors Degree $15,000 $44,926 0.33
Computer Science. Master’s Degree $38,434 $115,257 0.33
Agricultural Business and Management. Bachelors Degree $15,705 $47,352 0.33
Industrial Engineering. Bachelors Degree $23,952 $72,418 0.33
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $20,000 $62,963 0.32
Economics. Bachelors Degree $14,813 $46,721 0.32
Heating, Air Conditioning, Ventilation and Refrigeration Maintenance Technology/Technician (HAC, HACR, HVAC, HVACR). Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $10,234 $33,123 0.31
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. Bachelors Degree $24,337 $79,798 0.30
Architectural Engineering. Bachelors Degree $20,357 $66,967 0.30
Statistics. Bachelors Degree $14,350 $47,322 0.30
Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians. Bachelors Degree $27,735 $95,585 0.29
Construction Management. Bachelors Degree $23,000 $79,588 0.29
Mathematics and Computer Science. Bachelors Degree $18,000 $64,439 0.28
Social Sciences, Other. Bachelors Degree $14,384 $52,176 0.28
Mechanical Engineering. Bachelors Degree $17,241 $63,369 0.27
Civil Engineering. Bachelors Degree $17,677 $65,099 0.27
Electrical and Power Transmission Installers. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,670 $35,772 0.27
Computer Engineering. Bachelors Degree $18,429 $69,310 0.27
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. Associate’s Degree $21,174 $82,552 0.26
Educational/Instructional Media Design. Master’s Degree $20,500 $80,397 0.25
Applied Mathematics. Bachelors Degree $14,276 $56,246 0.25
Fine and Studio Arts. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $8,233 $32,877 0.25
Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering. Bachelors Degree $18,452 $77,140 0.24
Precision Metal Working. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $8,217 $34,534 0.24
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $8,041 $35,388 0.23
Culinary Arts and Related Services. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $6,765 $30,454 0.22
Computer Science. Bachelors Degree $16,056 $73,240 0.22
Engineering, General. Bachelors Degree $14,254 $73,150 0.19
Heavy/Industrial Equipment Maintenance Technologies. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $9,500 $48,756 0.19
Human Resources Management and Services. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $7,125 $41,618 0.17
Business Administration, Management and Operations. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $7,125 $49,530 0.14
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions. Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma $3,166 $27,715 0.11

Data Source and Notes

Data source: College Scorecard field-of-study dataset, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Department of Education here.

Timeframe reflected: Data in the “Estimated median debt” column are author’s calculations using data reflecting borrowers who entered repayment in award year 2017-18 or 2018-19. Data in the “Estimated median earnings, 1 year after completing program” column are author’s calculations using data reflecting the calendar year 2018 or 2019 earnings of students who received federal student aid and graduated from their program in academic year 2016-17 or 2017-18. Earnings data were adjusted by the Department of Education to 2020 dollars.

Notes: Ratios rounded to nearest thousandth.

Next, we will use College Scorecard data to show how federal student loan repayment in California compares to the rest of the U.S.

First, I examine dollar-based repayment rates, or “DBRR.” DBRR data in the College Scorecard measure the total current loan balances for cohorts of federal student loan borrowers, as well as the original amount that the cohort collectively owed when they entered repayment. I use data for cohorts that are 1, 5, 10, and 20 years into repayment.

We can calculate a cohort’s “DBRR ratio” by dividing its current total balance by its original total balance. When the ratio is over 1, the borrowers owe more than they originally borrowed, presumably due to the accumulation of interest outpacing the borrowers’ payments. When the ratio is under 1, the borrowers are making forward progress on repayment.

A few data notes may be useful when interpreting Figures 36 and 37:

  • These data reflect pre-pandemic balances.
  • DBRR does not track the same cohort of borrowers and report their loan balances at 1, 5, 10, and 20 years. Rather, each of these cohorts is a separate group of borrowers.
  • Not all colleges and universities have DBRR data in the College Scorecard. In Figures 36 and 37, you can hover over the points in the chart to see the count of institution represented in each cohort.
  • Ashford University has been re-coded in this analysis as a non-California institution. I made this imputation because the institution has an exceptionally large non-California online enrollment, skewing aggregations of data on California’s colleges.

In the College Scorecard, DBRR data are reported at the institution level and disaggregated by loan type (Stafford, Parent PLUS, and Grad PLUS). I aggregated the DBRR values across all institutions with sufficient data and compared institutions in California to institutions in the rest of the U.S., with breakouts by institutional control and loan type.

Figure 36 shows the DBRR ratios for four cohorts of borrowers in repayment. When the blue line (California) is higher than the yellow line (Rest of U.S.), it means that borrowers from California institutions owe a larger share of their original balance than do those from institutions across the rest of the U.S.

In all three tabs, we see that loan borrowers from California public institutions tend to have better (i.e. lower) DBRR ratios than loan borrowers from public institutions in the rest of the country, regardless of loan type. In the DBRR ratios for borrowers who took out loans for a nonprofit or for-profit institution, California institutions roughly match institutions nationwide.

Figure 36: Stafford

Figure 36: Parent PLUS

Figure 36: Grad PLUS

Data Source and Notes

Data source: College Scorecard institution dataset, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Department of Education here.

Timeframe reflected: These charts are comprised of data on loan balances for four distinct cohorts: the “1-year cohort,” the “5-year cohort,” the “10-year cohort,” and the “20-year cohort,” signifying how many years the cohort of borrowers has been in repayment. The data values are derived from the current balance of the borrowers compared to the original balance when they entered repayment (be it 1, 5, 10, or 20 years prior).

More specifically, the cohorts are defined as the following:

  • 1-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY2017-18 or AY2018-19. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.
  • 5-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY2013-14 or AY2014-15. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.
  • 10-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY2008-09 or AY2009-10. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.
  • 20-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY1998-99 or AY1999-00. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.

The measures reflect pre-pandemic balances.

Notes: Ashford University has been recoded as a non-California institution for the purpose of this analysis.

Overall, California performs well along DBRR metrics compared to the rest of the U.S. However, this same data can be used to track cohorts’ average loan balances, which reveals some concerning trends for California. I derived the average loan balance by dividing current balances by borrower count. Note that a borrower who has fully paid off their loan is still counted in the average measure.

Figure 37 shows the average current loan amount for four cohorts, organized by institutional control and loan type, comparing California institutions to those in the rest of the U.S. In the first tab, we see that average Stafford loan amounts are lower among borrowers from California institutions than those from institutions across the rest of the U.S., driven by lower average loans at California’s public institutions.

The next two tabs tell stories that more worrisome. Borrowers from California’s private colleges have higher average Parent PLUS loans than those from non-California private colleges. This is especially true in the for-profit sector: 5 years into repayment, Parent PLUS borrowers from California for-profit institutions owe an average of $22,000, versus $14,000 for Parent PLUS borrowers from for-profits outside of California. This may be a more recent trend, as the gap is much smaller in the 10- and 20-year cohorts.

Looking now to Grad PLUS, we see similar trends. Borrowers from California’s private colleges have higher average Grad PLUS loans than those from non-California private colleges, especially for-profits. For the 5-year cohort, average Grad PLUS loans for borrowers from California nonprofits are 29 percent higher than those for borrowers from non-California nonprofits. In the same cohort, average Grad PLUS loans for borrowers from California for-profits are 38 percent higher than those for borrowers from non-California for-profits. On the bright side, average Grad PLUS loans from California’s public colleges are lower than average Grad PLUS loans from non-California public colleges, across all four cohorts.

Figure 37: Stafford

Figure 37: Parent PLUS

Figure 37: Grad PLUS

Data Source and Notes

Data source: College Scorecard institution dataset, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Department of Education here.

Timeframe reflected: These charts are comprised of data on loan balances for four distinct cohorts: the “1-year cohort,” the “5-year cohort,” the “10-year cohort,” and the “20-year cohort,” signifying how many years the cohort of borrowers has been in repayment. The data values are derived from the current balance of the borrowers compared to the original balance when they entered repayment (be it 1, 5, 10, or 20 years prior).

More specifically, the cohorts are defined as the following:

  • 1-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY2017-18 or AY2018-19. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.
  • 5-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY2013-14 or AY2014-15. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.
  • 10-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY2008-09 or AY2009-10. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.
  • 20-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY1998-99 or AY1999-00. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.

The measures reflect pre-pandemic balances.

Notes: One factor influencing the slope of these lines is the rising cost of college. For example, the far-right points in each chart represent borrowers who entered repayment twenty years ago, when college costs were somewhat lower than they are today; it follows that their average loan amount would be slightly lower than other cohorts’, even after accounting for the additional time the 20-year cohort has had to repay their loans. Ashford University has been recoded as a non-California institution for the purpose of this analysis.

Taken together, figures 36 and 37 show that borrowers from California’s colleges and universities make similar or better progress on repayment compared to borrowers from colleges and universities across the rest of the U.S. However, for borrowers with Parent PLUS and Grad PLUS loans, average loan balances tend to be higher when they are for enrollment in California institutions, and it takes those borrowers even longer to bring down those balances.

Consider that, for borrowers with Grad PLUS loans from a California for-profit college, the average loan of those who have been in repayment for 20 years is roughly $27,800. That means, for the typical borrower with Grad PLUS loans for a California for-profit, even 20 years is not enough to get the balance below $20,000. Grad PLUS borrowers from for-profits outside California owe an average of $8,618 after 20 years in repayment.

Now we will examine institutions’ cohort default rates (CDR), a measure of the frequency with which borrowers from an institution default. I use CDR data from the College Scorecard and aggregate by institutional control and institutions’ predominant degree awarded. Unfortunately, the College Scorecard does not disaggregate CDR data by loan type.

Figure 38 shows that, overall, California institutions have lower CDR rates than those outside the U.S., across all three institutional controls. This is good news, because it means borrowers are finding ways to stave off default. One exception is for-profit colleges that predominantly offer bachelor’s degrees: those in California have a CDR of 12.8 percent, compared to a CDR of 11.3 percent for those outside California.

Figure 38: CDR by Control

Figure 38: CDR by Control and Predominant Degree Awarded

Data Source and Notes

Data source: College Scorecard institution dataset, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Department of Education here.

Timeframe reflected: The three-year cohort default rates presented here represent borrowers who entered repayment between October 1, 2017 and September 30, 2018. Those counted as defaulters are those who defaulted anytime before September 30, 2020.

Notes:

American Community Survey

Finally, we are interested in why people take out student loan debt, particularly the motivation to increase one’s income. California is a high-income state, but it is also a state with a high cost of living. Is California a state where someone particularly needs education to achieve a comfortable living, to a greater degree than most states? We can explore this using data from the American Community Survey.

About the data

The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau that samples one percent of all U.S. households every year. It asks about a battery of person-level and household-level questions. Here, we are interested in data on education and income.

The COVID-19 pandemic severely strained the Census Bureau’s ability to conduct the ACS in a way that meets the bureau’s quality standards in the 2020 survey year. Therefore, we focus on a five-year data set spanning years 2015 to 2019, known as the “Public Use Microdata Sample.”

The 2015-2019 ACS PUMS data set contains records on 16 million individuals across all states, bringing to bear an immense volume of data. I filter for those who are aged 18 to 65 and in the labor force, reducing the sample size to 7.3 million individuals. We can compare annual income across education level and state.

Findings

We will examine two ways of measuring gaps in income across groups: the attainment of a threshold income, and average income.

First, we find what percentage of California’s workers attain certain benchmark incomes, broken out by education level. Comparing California’s rank along these measures is one way to visualize how the state’s income dynamics differ from the rest of the country’s.

I use $60,000 as an income cutoff for comparing workers whose highest education is a bachelor’s degree to those whose highest education is a high school diploma (or equivalent). I use $80,000 as an income cutoff for comparing workers whose highest education is a graduate degree to those whose highest education is a bachelor’s degree.

Figure 39 shows the percentages of workers meeting these benchmarks by state, separated by education level. California’s share of bachelor’s degree holders who earn $60,000 is seventh-highest, but its share of high school diploma holders who earn $60,000 is barely in the top half. Table 11 breaks down the percentage point differences and find that California has one of the largest increases between high school-educated workers and four-year college-educated workers, in terms of the attainment of a $60,000 income. Similar trends can be found for the jump in likelihood that a California worker earns $80,000, based on whether they have attained a graduate degree instead of only a bachelor’s degree.

Figure 39: Share of workforce earning $60,000

Figure 39: Share of workforce earning $80,000

Table 11: State ranks

Share of workforce who earn $60,000, by educational attainment
Measure Value
Share of high school diploma holders in California who earn $60,000 11.2%
Share of bachelor’s degree holders in California who earn $60,000 44.9%
Percentage point increase in likelihood of earning $60,000, high school to bachelor’s 33.7pp
California’s national rank by percentage point difference (1=greatest difference) 2
Share of workforce who earn $80,000, by educational attainment
Measure Value
Share of bachelor’s degree holders in California who earn $80,000 31.7%
Share of graduate degree holders in California who earn $80,000 51.2%
Percentage point increase in likelihood of earning $80,000, bachelor’s to graduate degree 19.6pp
California’s national rank by percentage point difference (1=greatest difference) 4

Data Source and Notes

Data source: American Community Survey Public Use Microdata Survey 5-year 2019 dataset, accessed April 2023, available through the U.S. Census Bureau here.

Timeframe reflected: The 5-year PUMS data set reflects survey data collected in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019.

Notes:

Next, we turn to average wages, examined in Figure 40 and Table 12. Californians with only a high school diploma earn about the same amount as they would in other states, based on their education level. But the average wages of workers with a bachelor’s degree are higher in California than in other states, and the same goes for workers with a graduate degree. We can see why the state is first overall in the average wage increase between high school-educated workers and those with a bachelor’s degree.

Figure 40: Average income by education level

Table 12: State ranks

Average annual wages of workers by highest education: High school diploma vs. Bachelor’s degree
Measure Value
Average wages of workers with a high school diploma in California $31,237
Average wages of workers with a bachelor’s degree in California $72,540
Percentage increase in average wages, high school to bachelor’s 132.2%
California’s national rank by percentage increase (1=greatest increase) 1
Average annual wages of workers by highest education: Bachelor’s degree vs. Graduate degree
Measure Value
Average wages of workers with a bachelor’s degree in California $72,540
Average wages of workers with a graduate degree in California $108,488
Percentage increase in average wages, bachelor’s to graduate degree 49.6%
California’s national rank by percentage increase (1=greatest increase) 10

Data Source and Notes

Data source: American Community Survey Public Use Microdata Survey 5-year 2019 dataset, accessed April 2023, available through the U.S. Census Bureau here.

Timeframe reflected: The 5-year PUMS data set reflects survey data collected in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019.

Notes: This analysis is limited to adults aged 18 to 65 who are in the workforce, including those who are unemployed. Annual wages refer to wages earned over a 12 month period.

Checks on Data Universes and Samples

In this final section, I provide further statistics to check the validity of our data universes and samples.

Is the sub-sample on California households from SHED sufficiently large to draw comparisons across groups?

The pooled data from SHED that we use contains survey records from 71,710 households nationwide, of which 7,891 (or 11%) are from California. Of those 7,891 California households, 1,117 hold student loan debt.

Throughout this document, the number of households included in each sub-sample is provided in the “Data Source and Notes” tab of each figure or table. We use the household-level population weights provided by the Federal Reserve to derive estimates of population statistics.

The smallest sub-samples used in our analysis are for California households with student loans, broken down by the racial identity of the survey respondent. In nearly every case, Black student loan borrowers in California are the smallest group. The next-smallest sub-sample is student loan borrowers in California who fall into the “Other, Non-Hispanic” category, which encompasses Asian, Pacific Islander, Native American, and other groups besides white, Hispanic, and Black families.

Not every survey question has an answer from every respondent, and some questions were not asked in every survey year in our pooled set. This causes variation in the number of respondents by sub-sample, depending on the variable under focus. What would be a sufficient number of respondents in a given sub-sample for us to feel confident drawing conclusions about differences across groups?

For questions such as this, statisticians refer to a study’s “power,” a measure of sample size that we can apply to the individual analyses in this document. A study that aims to detect an inter-group difference of 5 percent along a key variable needs more power (and thus more subjects) than a study that only aims to detect an inter-group difference of 10 percent or more. More respondents means more power, which means we can be even more confident that our results are not the result of chance.

Table 13 takes certain results from the SHED analysis above and measures the power of a two-sample t-test. (The figure numbers refer to the figures in this document.) After reporting the measure, groups, sample sizes, the sample proportions, the percentage point difference, it provides the power calculation. A power level of 0.8 is considered standard.

Table 13

Checking statistical power values of SHED analyses
Measure Figure Group 1 Group 2 N1 N2 P1 P2 Difference Power
Share of households who hold student loan debt Figure 7 Black households in CA White households in CA 450 4,039 26.3% 9.6% 16.7% 0.956
Share of households who hold student loan debt Figure 7 Hispanic households in CA White households in CA 2,005 4,039 17.4% 9.6% 7.8% 0.884
Share of borrowers who hold education-related credit card debt Figure 8 Hispanic borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 340 323 27.1% 16.7% 10.3% 0.376
Share of borrowers who hold education-related credit card debt Figure 8 Black borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 107 323 40.2% 16.7% 23.5% 0.677
Share of borrowers who hold education-related credit card debt Figure 8 Black and Hispanic borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 447 323 30.2% 16.7% 13.5% 0.580
Share of borrowers who hold education-related credit card debt Figure 8 Black borrowers in CA Black borrowers in rest of U.S. 107 1,713 40.2% 29.8% 10.5% 0.276
Share of borrowers who owe $25,000 or less Figure 9 Hispanic borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 337 322 72.5% 50.0% 22.5% 0.893
Share of borrowers who are behind on payments Figure 11 Black and Hispanic borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 321 235 31.1% 13.4% 17.7% 0.662
Share with debt for a child or grandchild’s education Figure 12 Hispanic households in CA White households in CA 1,255 2,788 10.5% 5.7% 4.8% 0.405
Share without a college degree Figure 13 Hispanic borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 387 412 53.6% 24.4% 29.2% 0.993
Share who own their home Figure 14 Black borrowers in CA Black borrowers in rest of U.S. 120 1,936 22.2% 42.8% -20.7% 0.709
Share who own their home Figure 14 Black borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 120 412 22.2% 40.8% -18.7% 0.562
Share who hold unpaid credit card debt Figure 15 Borrowers in CA Non-borrowers in CA 1,010 6,014 62.3% 39.5% 22.8% 1.000
Share who hold unpaid credit card debt Figure 15 Black and Hispanic borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 455 376 72.6% 55.2% 17.4% 0.801
Share who carry an unpaid credit card balance at least some of the time Figure 16 Black borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 102 368 80.2% 56.7% 23.5% 0.675
Share who carry an unpaid credit card balance at least some of the time Figure 16 Hispanic borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 301 368 71.6% 56.7% 14.8% 0.604
Share who carry an unpaid credit card balance at least some of the time Figure 16 Black and Hispanic borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 403 368 73.8% 56.7% 17.0% 0.763
Share who have savings under $50,000 Figure 17 Black and Hispanic borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 359 351 75.1% 57.2% 17.9% 0.770
Share who earn under $75,000 Figure 18 Hispanic borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 386 411 70.3% 46.9% 23.4% 0.952
Share who earn under $75,000 Figure 18 Black borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 118 411 58.3% 46.9% 11.4% 0.291
Share who report living comfortably Figure 19 Black borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 120 412 9.1% 33.4% -24.2% 0.756
Share who have a poor or very poor credit score Figure 21 Black borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 49 163 39.5% 9.2% 30.3% 0.585
Share who have a poor or very poor credit score Figure 21 Black borrowers in CA Black borrowers in rest of U.S. 49 784 39.5% 20.5% 19.0% 0.361
Share who cannot pay all their month’s bills in full Figure 22 Borrowers in CA Non-borrowers in CA 1,045 6,231 30.0% 17.6% 12.5% 0.982
Share who cannot pay all their month’s bills in full Figure 22 Black and Hispanic borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 474 385 38.5% 22.4% 16.0% 0.756
Share who are very confident they would be approved for a credit card Figure 26 Black and Hispanic borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 489 397 37.1% 58.1% -20.9% 0.927
Share who cannot replace 3 months of income using savings Figure 29 Black borrowers in CA White borrowers in CA 121 412 50.3% 36.1% 14.2% 0.394
Share who cannot replace 3 months of income using savings Figure 29 Black borrowers in CA Black borrowers in rest of U.S. 121 1,927 50.3% 45.2% 5.1% 0.137

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Federal Reserve here. See the data notes under the specified figures for more details about individual analyses summarized here.

Notes: I use the R package pwr and the pwr.2p2n.test function to calculate the power of certain subgroup comparisons, using two-sample t-tests with different sample sizes. The alpha level is set at 0.05 for all tests, which is considered standard. I do not factor in the population weight of respondents, for the purposes of measuring sample size: each respondent counts the same.

Not all the comparisons have a power value of at least 0.8. This informs how the accompanying policy report is written. For comparisons that meet the power threshold of 0.8, the report makes more definitive claims, such as “Hispanic student loan borrowers in California are less likely to have a college degree than white student loan borrowers in California.” For comparisons that are close to 0.8 but not above it (0.65 or higher), the report makes more cautious claims, such as “The data suggest that, in California, Black and Hispanic borrowers are less likely to report living comfortably than white student loan borrowers.” And comparisons that have power values even lower are not included in the policy report.

To what extent are the aggregate statistics based on FSA data influenced by individual institutions?

Figure 1 has twenty bars reflecting the average annual loan at California institutions: four rows for institutional control, five columns for loan program. For each of those bars, we can assess the amount that any individual institution is driving the height of the bar, which represents the average annual loan amount.

Figure 41

Data Source and Notes

Data source: Federal Student Aid Data Center, spreadsheet on Direct Loan volume for Q4 2018-19, “Award year summary” tab, available here, accessed October 2022.

Timeframe reflected: Figures in this graph reflect the 2018-19 award year.

Notes: Average loan amounts reflect loan disbursements, not loan originations. These averages do not include students who receive no loans. Only four-year institutions are included.

This figure gives good context to Figure 1, and particularly the concerns about Grad PLUS and Parent PLUS raised in the policy report.

  • University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences comprises 48.1% of all for-profit Grad PLUS loans, and it has the highest average Grad PLUS loan of any California for-profit.
  • Together, West Cost University, Academy of Art University, and the Fashion Institute of Design & Marketing comprise 51.3% of for-profit Parent PLUS loans, and their average Parent PLUS loans are all greater than the average for-profit Parent PLUS loan.
  • USC comprises 18.4% of all nonprofit Grad PLUS loans, and 12.9% of all statewide Grad PLUS loans (across all controls).
  • All the public institutions with above-average Grad PLUS loans are from the UC system.
  • CSU campuses tend to bring the statewide Grad PLUS average down.

To what extent are the aggregate statistics based on College Scorecard data influenced by individual institutions?

As we did with the check on FSA data, we will assess the influence of individual institutions on the average balances over time, which is in Figure 37 in this document.

Figure 42: Stafford

Figure 42: Parent PLUS

Figure 42: Grad PLUS

Data Source and Notes

Data source: College Scorecard institution dataset, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Department of Education here.

Timeframe reflected: These charts are comprised of data on loan balances for four distinct cohorts: the “1-year cohort,” the “5-year cohort,” the “10-year cohort,” and the “20-year cohort,” signifying how many years the cohort of borrowers has been in repayment. The data values are derived from the current balance of the borrowers compared to the original balance when they entered repayment (be it 1, 5, 10, or 20 years prior).

More specifically, the cohorts are defined as the following:

  • 1-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY2017-18 or AY2018-19. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.
  • 5-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY2013-14 or AY2014-15. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.
  • 10-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY2008-09 or AY2009-10. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.
  • 20-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY1998-99 or AY1999-00. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.

The measures reflect pre-pandemic balances.

Next we examine Figure 37.

Figure 43: Stafford

Figure 43: Parent PLUS

Figure 43: Grad PLUS

Data Source and Notes

Data source: College Scorecard institution dataset, accessed November 2022, available through the U.S. Department of Education here.

Timeframe reflected: These charts are comprised of data on loan balances for four distinct cohorts: the “1-year cohort,” the “5-year cohort,” the “10-year cohort,” and the “20-year cohort,” signifying how many years the cohort of borrowers has been in repayment. The data values are derived from the current balance of the borrowers compared to the original balance when they entered repayment (be it 1, 5, 10, or 20 years prior).

More specifically, the cohorts are defined as the following:

  • 1-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY2017-18 or AY2018-19. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.
  • 5-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY2013-14 or AY2014-15. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.
  • 10-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY2008-09 or AY2009-10. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.
  • 20-year cohort: Borrowers who entered repayment in AY1998-99 or AY1999-00. Data on current balances reflect balances in 2018-2019 or 2019-2020.

The measures reflect pre-pandemic balances.

How strong is our confidence in the statistics derived from NPSAS?

For the statistics in this report that are derived from NPSAS, I use the National Center on Education Statistics’ Datalab tool, which is an online user interface for aggregating NCES survey data. With each query, Datalab provides the standard error of each estimate, allowing us to generate confidence intervals.

Including confidence intervals on every NPSAS query included above would have required significant additional coding time. In this section, I provide confidence intervals for selected key findings that were derived from the NPSAS data.

Table 14

Checking confidence intervals of NPSAS analyses
Measure Figure Group State Conf. Int. Lower Bound Estimate Conf. Int. Upper Bound
Share borrowing undergraduate loans Figure 2 Overall CA 19.0% 20.5% 22.1%
Share borrowing undergraduate loans Figure 2 Overall US 37.0% 37.4% 37.8%
Share borrowing undergraduate loans Figure 2 White CA 15.2% 17.6% 20.0%
Share borrowing undergraduate loans Figure 2 Black CA 21.3% 28.0% 34.7%
Average undergraduate loan Figure 2 Overall CA $9,345 $9,788 $10,232
Average undergraduate loan Figure 2 Overall US $8,441 $8,528 $8,614
Share borrowing graduate loans Figure 3 Overall CA 46.0% 50.9% 55.7%
Share borrowing graduate loans Figure 3 Overall US 46.4% 47.7% 49.0%
Share borrowing graduate loans Figure 3 Black CA 64.4% 80.5% 96.6%
Share borrowing graduate loans Figure 3 Black US 59.7% 64.9% 70.0%
Share borrowing graduate loans Figure 3 Latino/a CA 52.0% 62.3% 72.7%
Share borrowing graduate loans Figure 3 Latino/a US 56.1% 61.2% 66.3%
Share borrowing graduate loans Figure 3 White CA 36.2% 44.1% 52.1%
Share borrowing graduate loans Figure 3 White US 40.6% 42.5% 44.3%
Share borrowing graduate loans Figure 3 Black women CA 77.6% 88.5% 99.4%
Share borrowing graduate loans Figure 3 Overall CA 46.0% 50.9% 55.7%
Average graduate loan Figure 3 Overall CA $25,268 $28,272 $31,277
Average graduate loan Figure 3 Black CA $16,284 $26,537 $36,791
Average graduate loan Figure 3 Black US $18,692 $20,633 $22,574
Average graduate loan Figure 3 Latino/a CA $18,372 $23,795 $29,218
Average graduate loan Figure 3 Latino/a US $18,399 $20,556 $22,714
Share with undergraduate loans by graduation Figure 5 Black CA 71.9% 84.4% 96.8%
Share with undergraduate loans by graduation Figure 5 Latino/a CA 56.2% 61.6% 67.0%
Share with undergraduate loans by graduation Figure 5 Pacific Islander CA 58.4% 80.1% 101.8%
Share with undergraduate loans by graduation Figure 5 Asian CA 47.0% 55.9% 64.7%
Share with undergraduate loans by graduation Figure 5 White CA 56.6% 61.6% 66.5%
Share with undergraduate loans by graduation Figure 5 Overall CA 58.3% 61.8% 65.4%
Average cumulative undergraduate loan at graduation Figure 5 Overall CA $23,211 $25,363 $27,516
Average cumulative undergraduate loan at graduation Figure 5 Black CA $26,006 $33,069 $40,133
Average cumulative undergraduate loan at graduation Figure 5 Latino/a CA $20,701 $23,135 $25,568
Average cumulative undergraduate loan at graduation Figure 5 Pacific Islander CA $22,848 $30,562 $38,275
Average cumulative undergraduate loan at graduation Figure 5 Asian CA $19,331 $23,141 $26,952
Average cumulative undergraduate loan at graduation Figure 5 White CA $24,978 $27,447 $29,917

Data Source and Notes

Data source: National Postsecondary Student Aid Study. Datalab interface available here. See the data notes under the specified figures for more details about individual analyses summarized here.

Timeframe reflected: Figures in this graph reflect students enrolled in the 2015-16 academic year.