FAFSA lower earnings list
California schools on the FAFSA “lower earnings” list
103 schools in California are flagged "lower earnings" in the Department of Education's March 2026 release, the list the 2027-28 FAFSA uses, out of 500 California schools with an earnings figure. The December 2025 release, which earlier news coverage reported, flagged 132: 43 came off and 14 were added.
A California school is flagged when its graduates’ median earnings four years after completing are below $36,565, the median for California high school graduates aged 25 to 34 (March 2026 release, January 2026 dollars). A school that mostly enrolls out-of-state students or operates in several states is compared with the national median, $34,635, instead.
Data period: March 2026 release, completers of 2017-18 and 2018-19, earnings measured in 2022 and 2023. Nationally: 999 schools flagged now, 1,365 in December 2025. National report and method
Flagged in the March 2026 release (103)
Names as the Department lists them. A linked name opens the school’s CampusPin profile, which shows its earnings and benchmark.
- Academy of Esthetics and Cosmetology
- Advance Beauty College
- Advance Beauty Techs Academy, new since December (had no figure)
- American Academy of Dramatic Arts-Los Angeles
- American Beauty College
- American Institute of Massage Therapy, new since December (had no figure)
- Angeles College
- Asian-American International Beauty College
- Associated Barber College of San Diego, new since December (had no figure)
- Associated Technical College-Los Angeles
- ATA College
- Bellus Academy-Chula Vista
- Bellus Academy-El Cajon
- Bellus Academy-Poway
- Beyond 21st Century Beauty Academy, new since December (had no figure)
- Borner's Barber College, new since December (had no figure)
- California Barber and Beauty College, new since December (had no figure)
- California Beauty College
- California College of Barbering and Cosmetology, new since December (had no figure)
- California Hair Design Academy
- California Healing Arts College
- Career Academy of Beauty
- Citrus Heights Beauty College
- Coachella Valley Beauty College
- Coachella Valley Beauty College-Hemet
- Coastline Beauty College
- Coba Academy
- CRU Institute of Cosmetology and Barbering
- Design's School of Cosmetology
- Diamond Beauty College
- Diversified Vocational College
- Elite Cosmetology School
- Estes Institute of Cosmetology Arts and Science
- Federico Beauty Institute
- Fredrick and Charles Beauty College
- Galaxy Medical College
- Hacienda La Puente Adult Education
- Healing Hands School of Holistic Health
- Hilltop Beauty School
- Hinton Barber and Beauty College
- Hoss Lee Academy, new since December (had no figure)
- Hypnosis Motivation Institute
- International College of Beauty Arts & Sciences
- International College of Cosmetology
- International School of Beauty Inc
- J D Academy of Salon and Spa
- John Wesley International Barber and Beauty College
- Lancaster Beauty School
- Lawrence & Company College of Cosmetology
- Lawrence & Company College of Cosmetology
- Los Angeles College of Aesthetics
- Los Angeles College of Music, new since December (had no figure)
- Lu Ross Academy
- Lyle's College of Beauty
- Lyle's College of Beauty
- Lytles Redwood Empire Beauty College
- Milan Institute of Cosmetology-Vacaville
- Milan Institute-Bakersfield
- Milan Institute-Clovis
- Milan Institute-Merced
- Milan Institute-Palm Desert
- Moler Barber College
- My Le's Beauty College
- National Holistic Institute
- New York Film Academy
- North Adrian's College of Beauty Inc
- Palladium Technical Academy Inc
- Palomar Institute of Cosmetology
- Paul Mitchell the School-Costa Mesa
- Paul Mitchell the School-East Bay
- Paul Mitchell the School-Fresno
- Paul Mitchell the School-Modesto
- Paul Mitchell the School-North Tahoe
- Paul Mitchell the School-Pasadena
- Paul Mitchell the School-Sacramento
- Paul Mitchell the School-San Diego
- Paul Mitchell the School-Sherman Oaks
- Paul Mitchell the School-Temecula
- Pomona Unified School District Adult and Career Education
- Professional Institute of Beauty
- Redondo Beach Beauty College
- Riverside County Office of Education-School of Career Education
- Salon Success Academy-Corona
- Salon Success Academy-Fontana
- Salon Success Academy-Redlands
- Salon Success Academy-Riverside
- Salon Success Academy-Upland
- Salon Success Academy-West Covina
- San Bernardino Beauty College, new since December (had no figure)
- Santa Ana Beauty Academy
- Santa Ana Beauty College
- Sierra College of Beauty
- Thanh Le College School of Cosmetology
- The Salon Professional Academy-San Jose
- UEI College-Bakersfield
- UEI College-Fresno
- Universal College of Beauty Inc-Los Angeles 2
- Universal Healthcare Careers College
- Urban Barber College, new since December (had no figure)
- Victory Career College, new since December (had no figure)
- Waynes College of Beauty, new since December (had no figure)
- World Mission University, new since December (had no figure)
- ZMS The Academy
Flagged in December 2025, not now (43)
The reason is given for each. Because the benchmark and the graduating cohort changed too, coming off is not by itself evidence that graduates earn more.
- Academy for Salon Professionals, no earnings figure now
- Adrian's Beauty College of Turlock, not in the March 2026 list
- American College of Healthcare and Technology, now above the benchmark
- American College of Healthcare and Technology, now above the benchmark
- American College of Healthcare and Technology-Santa Ana, now above the benchmark
- American Medical Sciences Center, now above the benchmark
- Arizona College of Nursing-Ontario, now above the benchmark
- Associated Technical College-San Diego, not in the March 2026 list
- Baldwin Park Adult & Community Education, now above the benchmark
- Barstow Community College, now above the benchmark
- Central California School of Continuing Education, now above the benchmark
- Cinta Aveda Institute, now above the benchmark
- Healthcare Career College, now above the benchmark
- High Desert Medical College, now above the benchmark
- Los Angeles Film School, now above the benchmark
- Mayfield College, now above the benchmark
- Milan Institute-Visalia, now above the benchmark
- Modern Beauty Academy, no earnings figure now
- National Career College, now above the benchmark
- National Polytechnic College, now above the benchmark
- North-West College-Glendale, now above the benchmark
- North-West College-West Covina, now above the benchmark
- Pacific College of Health and Science, now above the benchmark
- PCI College, now above the benchmark
- San Francisco Conservatory of Music, now above the benchmark
- San Francisco Institute of Esthetics & Cosmetology Inc, now above the benchmark
- Shasta School of Cosmetology, no earnings figure now
- Southern California Health Institute, now above the benchmark
- Stellar Career College, now above the benchmark
- SUM Bible College and Theological Seminary, now above the benchmark
- Sutter County Career Training Center, now above the benchmark
- UEI College-Chula Vista, now above the benchmark
- UEI College-Garden Grove, now above the benchmark
- UEI College-Gardena, now above the benchmark
- UEI College-Huntington Park, now above the benchmark
- UEI College-Oceanside, now above the benchmark
- UEI College-Ontario, now above the benchmark
- UEI College-Reseda, now above the benchmark
- UEI College-Riverside, now above the benchmark
- UEI College-Sacramento, now above the benchmark
- UEI College-Stockton, now above the benchmark
- UEI College-West Covina, now above the benchmark
- Yeshiva Ohr Elchonon Chabad West Coast Talmudical Seminary, now above the benchmark
What the notice does and does not mean
- It is informational: it does not affect federal aid eligibility, and a flagged school can still be listed and attended.
- It describes a whole school, not a program. The Department says earnings differ by credential and field.
- It covers graduates who received federal aid and were working and not enrolled when earnings were measured.
- A school with no earnings figure shows no notice. That is an absence of data, not a pass.
Add the California FAFSA notice card to your website (counselors, college-access programs, schools)
Plain HTML with no script and no tracking: the state's flagged count, the previous release and the benchmark, with the notice's caveats and the source, linking back to this page and its full list of schools.
Questions about California
- How many California schools are on the FAFSA lower earnings list?
- 103 schools in California are flagged "lower earnings" in the Department of Education's March 2026 release, the list the 2027-28 FAFSA uses, out of 500 California schools with an earnings figure. The December 2025 release, which earlier news coverage reported, flagged 132: 43 came off and 14 were added. Every one is named on this page.
- Why did 43 schools in California come off the list?
- Of the 43 schools flagged in December 2025 and not now, 38 now clear the benchmark, 3 no longer have an earnings figure, 2 are not in the March 2026 list at all. The Department replaced the data on 22 March 2026 with a newer group of graduates (completers of 2017-18 and 2018-19, earnings measured in 2022 and 2023) and a re-estimated high school benchmark, so coming off the list is not by itself evidence that a school's graduates earn more.
- What earnings benchmark are California schools compared with?
- $36,565: the median earnings of California high school graduates aged 25 to 34 in the March 2026 release, in January 2026 dollars. The December 2025 release used $36,710, in June 2025 dollars and from an earlier survey, so the two are not a like-for-like comparison. A school that mostly enrolls out-of-state students or operates in several states is compared with the national median instead, $34,635.
- Does the lower earnings notice affect financial aid?
- No. The Department says the notice is informational only. It does not affect eligibility for federal aid, the Student Aid Index or how the FAFSA is processed, and students can still list and attend a flagged school. It is shown only to first-year undergraduates.
More on California colleges
- All colleges in California: cost, admissions and outcomes
- The Borrowing Gap: where college costs more than a family can borrow
- How to fill out the FAFSA, step by step
Other states
- Alabama
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
Sources, methodology & citation
Sources used across this page
Not every source informs every figure. Each data point draws on the source appropriate to it see the relevant section and the data dictionary for field-level provenance.
Federal Student Aid, FSA Data Center: Lower Earnings Data
The Department of Education’s institution-level earnings data and the "lower earnings" designation shown on the FAFSA Submission Summary (March 2026 release; the December 2025 release via the Internet Archive).
U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard
Net price by income band, post-graduation earnings, and federal aid context.
IPEDS / NCES College Navigator
Federal enrollment, admissions, tuition, retention, and program data. Released annually with a 1–2 year lag.
Where a value is unavailable it is shown as unavailable, never as 0, free, or a negative judgment. Always confirm final details with the institution before applying.
Suggested citation
CampusPin. (2026). California schools on the FAFSA "lower earnings" list. Retrieved from https://campuspin.com/research/fafsa-lower-earnings-colleges/california