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

# Northwestern University

Evanston, IL · 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 | $89,363 | recorded |
| Earnings range (25th–75th pct) | $61,037 – $139,122 | recorded |
| Typical federal debt | $14,000 | recorded |
| Debt of students who withdrew | $9,000 | recorded |
| Completion rate | 95% | recorded |
| Average annual net cost | $91,250 | recorded |
| % earning above a $28k HS-grad wage | 87% | recorded |
| Debt ÷ a year's earnings | 0.16× | derived |
| Earnings premium vs $28k HS benchmark | $61,363 | derived |

**95% 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 $14,000 (≈ 16% 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 $19,001 to $187,194 across 70 program(s).

| Major | Credential | Pay (1 yr out) | Median debt |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Law. | First Professional Degree | $187,194 | $154,286 |
| Business/Commerce, General. | Master's Degree | $162,478 | $76,735 |
| Medical Clinical Sciences/Graduate Medical Studies. | Master's Degree | $150,242 | $81,076 |
| Engineering, Other. | Master's Degree | $140,321 | $64,256 |
| Health and Medical Administrative Services. | Master's Degree | $129,419 | not reported |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Master's Degree | $120,709 | $172,164 |
| Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods. | Master's Degree | $118,780 | $42,454 |
| Community Organization and Advocacy. | Master's Degree | $115,760 | $69,011 |
| Legal Research and Advanced Professional Studies. | First Professional Degree | $112,796 | $75,943 |
| Engineering-Related Fields. | Master's Degree | $111,200 | not reported |
| Chemistry. | Doctoral Degree | $103,111 | not reported |
| Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions. | Master's Degree | $102,431 | $148,699 |
| Information Science/Studies. | Master's Degree | $101,303 | $39,844 |
| Computer Science. | Master's Degree | $101,171 | not reported |
| Information Science/Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $94,536 | $11,425 |
| Medical Illustration and Informatics. | Master's Degree | $88,288 | $45,980 |
| Industrial Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $84,644 | $18,000 |
| Mechanical Engineering. | Master's Degree | $84,295 | not reported |
| Computer Science. | Bachelor's Degree | $84,037 | $14,646 |
| Applied Mathematics. | Bachelor's Degree | $80,781 | not reported |
| Science Technologies/Technicians, Other. | Master's Degree | $79,568 | not reported |
| Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs, Other. | Master's Degree | $77,466 | $68,589 |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. | Doctoral Degree | $71,868 | $63,500 |
| Chemical Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $71,607 | $16,500 |
| Economics. | Bachelor's Degree | $71,488 | $15,250 |
| Mechanical Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $70,936 | $13,942 |
| Human Resources Management and Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $69,350 | $33,332 |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. | Doctoral Degree | $69,172 | $168,092 |
| Mathematics. | Bachelor's Degree | $68,815 | $12,418 |
| Communication and Media Studies. | Master's Degree | $68,121 | $55,813 |
| Legal Professions and Studies, Other. | Master's Degree | $66,854 | $61,372 |
| Manufacturing Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $66,553 | not reported |
| Public Administration. | Master's Degree | $66,011 | $44,568 |
| Community Organization and Advocacy. | Bachelor's Degree | $65,015 | $13,500 |
| Biomedical/Medical Engineering. | Master's Degree | $64,032 | $70,280 |
| Biotechnology. | Master's Degree | $63,570 | $82,387 |
| Medicine. | First Professional Degree | $60,913 | $201,568 |
| Biomedical/Medical Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $60,519 | $16,833 |
| Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General. | Master's Degree | $60,050 | $41,869 |
| Statistics. | Bachelor's Degree | $59,892 | $14,234 |
| Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication. | Master's Degree | $59,798 | $54,057 |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. | Master's Degree | $58,207 | $116,714 |
| Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education. | Master's Degree | $54,661 | $50,612 |
| Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions. | Master's Degree | $54,060 | $139,267 |
| Cell/Cellular Biology and Anatomical Sciences. | Doctoral Degree | $52,627 | not reported |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities. | Post-baccalaureate Certificate | $51,445 | not reported |
| Educational Administration and Supervision. | Master's Degree | $48,965 | $26,252 |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness. | Master's Degree | $48,897 | $38,772 |
| Communication and Media Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $48,590 | $17,687 |
| International Relations and National Security Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $46,450 | $19,234 |
| Political Science and Government. | Bachelor's Degree | $45,960 | $16,834 |
| Journalism. | Master's Degree | $45,043 | $64,766 |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. | Master's Degree | $44,415 | $112,106 |
| Journalism. | Bachelor's Degree | $44,144 | $14,834 |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities. | Bachelor's Degree | $43,630 | not reported |
| Arts, Entertainment, and Media Management. | Master's Degree | $42,782 | $75,398 |
| Sociology. | Bachelor's Degree | $41,134 | $13,622 |
| Chemistry. | Bachelor's Degree | $41,049 | not reported |
| Public Policy Analysis. | Bachelor's Degree | $40,701 | $18,750 |
| Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology. | Master's Degree | $39,767 | $153,657 |
| History. | Bachelor's Degree | $38,991 | $15,917 |
| Music. | Bachelor's Degree | $38,199 | $18,039 |
| Psychology, Other. | Bachelor's Degree | $37,353 | $11,630 |
| Psychology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $34,751 | $13,500 |
| English Language and Literature, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $29,896 | $15,450 |
| Radio, Television, and Digital Communication. | Bachelor's Degree | $27,414 | $15,000 |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. | Bachelor's Degree | $23,935 | $17,000 |
| Music. | Master's Degree | $21,311 | $47,600 |
| Neurobiology and Neurosciences. | Bachelor's Degree | $19,214 | $17,309 |
| Biology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $19,001 | $14,684 |

## 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 Northwestern University by field of study at the official Scorecard: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?147767

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