Free tool · federal data

What does this major pay at different colleges?

Pick a major, a degree level and a state. You get what graduates of each college's program earned four years after graduating and what they borrowed in federal loans, from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard, with the national median for the same program as the yardstick.

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History, bachelor's programs in California

Among 27 California bachelor's programs in History with federal earnings data, University of Southern California graduates earn the highest median, $79,940 four years after graduating, with a median federal debt of $12,138. California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo follows at $66,518. The national median for bachelor's graduates in the same program is $50,680. (2017-19 graduates, measured 2022-23, College Scorecard.)

Programs with data
27
Highest median
$79,940
National median
$50,680
The link opens this exact comparison.
History, bachelor's programs in California: median earnings four years after graduating and median federal debt, in order of earnings.
CollegeMedian earnings, 4 yrs aftervs national medianDebt borrowed at this college (median)
University of Southern California$79,940+58%$12,138
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo$66,518+31%$15,833
California State University-East Bay$65,217+29%$20,000
University of California, Berkeley$64,755+28%$13,034
University of California-San Diego$61,745+22%$16,756
University of California-Santa Cruz$60,519+19%$18,100
University of California, Los Angeles$59,555+18%$13,500
University of California-Santa Barbara$59,342+17%$14,282
San Francisco State University$58,717+16%$15,000
San Diego State University$57,861+14%$13,881
University of California-Davis$57,734+14%$13,312
Sonoma State University$56,819+12%$13,500
California State University-Bakersfield$56,081+11%—
California State University-Sacramento$55,797+10%$18,471
California State University-Los Angeles$55,413+9%$14,777
University of California-Irvine$53,481+6%$15,179
California State University-San Marcos$52,985+5%$16,847
California State University-Long Beach$52,423+3%$13,804
University of California-Riverside$51,913about the same$19,317
California State University-Fresno$51,676about the same$18,497
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona$51,217about the same$15,000
California State University-Stanislaus$49,882about the same$10,275
Ashford University$49,773about the same$32,938
California State University-Fullerton$48,309−5%$13,812
California State University-Northridge$45,821−10%$15,000

The 25 highest of 27 programs. Ordered by median earnings four years after graduating: one federal measure, not a ranking of program quality.

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Same major, other degree levels in California: Master's

History colleges in CaliforniaThe History major guideHow much the college matters, by major

What these numbers are

Earnings: graduates of 2017-18 and 2018-19, earnings measured in 2022 and 2023, in 2024 dollars. Only programs with at least 30 graduates in the earnings cohort are listed, and a multi-state system whose figure pools campuses in several states is left out of state lists. Median earnings of graduates who received federal student aid, worked, and were not enrolled in school; debt is the median federal loans borrowed at this college by graduates who borrowed (Direct Subsidized, Unsubsidized and Grad PLUS; not Parent PLUS, private loans or interest). Programs with too few graduates are suppressed by the Department of Education. Federal program group: History. Earnings reflect who enrolls and where graduates work as well as the program itself.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field-of-study data, 10 June 2026. Download every program (CSV).