---
title: Chapman University — cost, debt & earnings (College Scorecard)
location: Orange, CA
control: Private nonprofit
source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (2026-06-10 release)
sourceUrl: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/
---

# Chapman University

Orange, CA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor-granting

> Federal College Scorecard institution **medians** — not a prediction of any one student's outcome, and not a figure for any single program. Earnings/debt cover federally-aided students.

## The bottom line

| Figure | Value | Status |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Typical earnings, 10 yrs after entry | $70,070 | recorded |
| Earnings range (25th–75th pct) | $42,691 – $100,753 | recorded |
| Typical federal debt | $17,750 | recorded |
| Debt of students who withdrew | $9,500 | recorded |
| Completion rate | 82% | recorded |
| Average annual net cost | $83,146 | recorded |
| % earning above a $28k HS-grad wage | 78% | recorded |
| Debt ÷ a year's earnings | 0.25× | derived |
| Earnings premium vs $28k HS benchmark | $42,070 | derived |

**82% of students finish** — the loans are owed whether or not you graduate, so read every figure below next to this number.

Typical **federal** loan debt is $17,750 (≈ 25% of a year's typical earnings here). Note: this counts federal loans only — not private loans, Parent PLUS, or family savings — so true borrowing is usually higher; and because dropouts borrow less, low-completion schools can show a deceptively low debt figure.

## Earnings by major (the number that decides "worth it")

> **Different measure — read on its own terms.** These are median earnings **1 year after completing the program** (early career, graduates only) — NOT the 10-years-after-entry school-wide figure above. Do not compare a program figure to the school figure; compare majors to each other. The Dept. of Education omits programs with too few graduates.

By program, early-career pay ranges from $18,093 to $83,362 across 37 program(s).

| Major | Credential | Pay (1 yr out) | Median debt |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. | First Professional Degree | $83,362 | $159,899 |
| Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration. | First Professional Degree | $79,421 | $248,569 |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. | Doctoral Degree | $77,350 | not reported |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Master's Degree | $76,310 | $79,168 |
| Curriculum and Instruction. | Doctoral Degree | $73,746 | not reported |
| Law. | First Professional Degree | $64,468 | $170,800 |
| Accounting and Related Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $61,856 | $20,875 |
| Computer Science. | Bachelor's Degree | $58,871 | $21,809 |
| Business/Managerial Economics. | Bachelor's Degree | $55,212 | $22,977 |
| Student Counseling and Personnel Services. | Master's Degree | $54,139 | not reported |
| Special Education and Teaching. | Master's Degree | $53,287 | not reported |
| Educational Administration and Supervision. | Master's Degree | $52,423 | $30,300 |
| Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions. | Master's Degree | $50,692 | $87,286 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods. | Master's Degree | $49,936 | not reported |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Bachelor's Degree | $47,455 | $19,625 |
| Business/Corporate Communications. | Bachelor's Degree | $44,813 | $17,875 |
| Design and Applied Arts. | Bachelor's Degree | $44,707 | $23,823 |
| Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions. | Master's Degree | $44,513 | $119,750 |
| Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication. | Bachelor's Degree | $43,478 | $22,250 |
| Political Science and Government. | Bachelor's Degree | $38,955 | $20,500 |
| Philosophy. | Bachelor's Degree | $38,923 | not reported |
| Journalism. | Bachelor's Degree | $36,779 | $22,290 |
| Film/Video and Photographic Arts. | Bachelor's Degree | $33,357 | $18,500 |
| Communication and Media Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $33,002 | $18,777 |
| Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies. | Master's Degree | $28,228 | not reported |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. | Master's Degree | $28,001 | $138,664 |
| Education, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $25,900 | $21,500 |
| Film/Video and Photographic Arts. | Master's Degree | $25,829 | $144,710 |
| Sociology. | Bachelor's Degree | $24,974 | $20,000 |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. | Bachelor's Degree | $24,756 | $22,500 |
| Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $23,858 | not reported |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness. | Bachelor's Degree | $23,512 | not reported |
| Public Health. | Bachelor's Degree | $23,217 | $23,125 |
| Psychology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $23,026 | $20,500 |
| Music. | Bachelor's Degree | $21,755 | $27,000 |
| Biology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $19,549 | $20,500 |
| Dance. | Bachelor's Degree | $18,093 | $23,624 |

## What this is — and is NOT

Institution-wide medians from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. **Not** a prediction of what you would earn or owe, **not** a figure for any single program (a CS and a fine-arts graduate of the same school diverge enormously), **not** proof the school caused the outcome (selection, not causation), and **not** a "best college" ranking. Explore Chapman University by field of study at the official Scorecard: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?111948

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Structured data (JSON-LD), each figure labeled by epistemic status: `/education/chapman-university-ca.jsonld` · all schools: `/education`