Student debt at California colleges

California colleges by median federal debt at graduation

Lowest median debt first, showing 60 of 265 colleges (97 public, 168 private). This is a sort of one reported figure, not a ranking and not a recommendation. Every row shows the borrower share beside the dollar amount because neither number means much alone.

The illustrative payment assumes the standard 10-year federal repayment plan at 6.52%, the U.S. Department of Education, fixed rate for undergraduate Direct Loans first disbursed July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027. It is an illustration, not a quote.

What the California borrowing data shows

• Across the 265 California colleges reporting both figures, median federal debt at graduation is $14,505 and the median borrower share is 38.3%. The middle half of these colleges falls between $10,500 and $22,395.
• On the standard 10-year federal repayment plan at 6.52%, $14,505 works out to about $165 a month for 10 years. That is an illustration of one repayment plan, not a quote: income-driven plans produce very different payments, and a real borrower's loans carry the rate in force in each year they borrowed.
• The borrower share varies far more than the dollar figure. At Fresno City College 0.3% of students take federal loans; at Healthcare Career College it is 89.9%. Read the two numbers together — a low median at a college where almost nobody borrows describes the few who did, not the typical student.
• Median earnings ten years after entry, across the 251 California colleges here that report it, is $48,341. That figure covers students who received federal aid and reflects the mix of programs and students at each college, not the effect of attending it.

Frequently asked questions

How much student debt do California college graduates have?

Across the 265 California colleges that report both figures, the median federal loan debt at graduation is $14,505, and a median of 38.3% of students take federal loans. Individual colleges range from $2,819 to $40,326. These are federal loans only, so households that also used private or parent PLUS loans borrowed more than this.

Does a low average debt figure mean a college is affordable?

Not on its own. Median debt describes only the students who borrowed and completed. A college where 15% of students borrow can post a low median while most families pay a high price out of pocket, and a college where most students borrow can post a modest median because its price is genuinely low. Always read the dollar figure together with the share who borrow, which is why this page never shows one without the other.

Is this every college in California?

No. This page covers the 265 California institutions in CampusPin's dataset that report BOTH median debt at graduation and the borrower share. A college reporting only one of the two is excluded rather than shown with half the statistic. CampusPin's dataset is also not the complete federal Title IV universe.

Why is this lower than the average student debt figure I have seen for California?

Because they measure different things. This page reports median federal debt AT GRADUATION for students at California colleges. The widely published state figures report the total federal balance carried by borrowers who RESIDE in a state, which includes graduate-school borrowing and years of accrued interest on loans taken long ago, so it is substantially higher. Neither is wrong. Use debt at graduation to compare colleges against each other, and the residence figure to understand what people in a state currently owe.

What is not counted in these figures?

Private student loans, parent PLUS borrowing, and money families pay without borrowing are all outside this data, so real household cost is higher than the numbers here. The figures also reflect a prior graduating cohort and lag the current academic year by one to two federal reporting cycles.