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

# The Catholic University of America

Washington, DC · 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 | $73,250 | recorded |
| Earnings range (25th–75th pct) | $47,330 – $101,075 | recorded |
| Typical federal debt | $22,250 | recorded |
| Debt of students who withdrew | $8,750 | recorded |
| Completion rate | 79% | recorded |
| Average annual net cost | $75,481 | recorded |
| % earning above a $28k HS-grad wage | 83% | recorded |
| Debt ÷ a year's earnings | 0.30× | derived |
| Earnings premium vs $28k HS benchmark | $45,250 | derived |

**79% 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 $22,250 (≈ 30% 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 $23,921 to $100,058 across 25 program(s).

| Major | Credential | Pay (1 yr out) | Median debt |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Master's Degree | $100,058 | $61,500 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | First Professional Degree | $73,312 | not reported |
| Human Resources Management and Services. | Master's Degree | $72,088 | not reported |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing. | Bachelor's Degree | $71,927 | $26,976 |
| Theology and Religious Vocations, Other. | Doctoral Degree | $68,035 | not reported |
| Civil Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $67,219 | $24,625 |
| Mechanical Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $66,697 | $27,000 |
| Business/Commerce, General. | Master's Degree | $65,277 | $34,250 |
| Library Science and Administration. | First Professional Degree | $62,409 | $41,000 |
| Law. | First Professional Degree | $62,128 | $147,964 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Bachelor's Degree | $57,624 | $25,500 |
| Architecture. | First Professional Degree | $56,331 | not reported |
| Biomedical/Medical Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $53,024 | not reported |
| Finance and Financial Management Services. | Bachelor's Degree | $51,938 | $24,620 |
| Marketing. | Bachelor's Degree | $51,568 | $27,000 |
| Social Work. | First Professional Degree | $51,022 | $71,981 |
| Theological and Ministerial Studies. | Master's Degree | $47,299 | not reported |
| Architecture. | Bachelor's Degree | $46,662 | $26,712 |
| International Business. | Bachelor's Degree | $43,974 | not reported |
| Communication and Media Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $43,671 | $27,000 |
| Political Science and Government. | Bachelor's Degree | $41,721 | $25,000 |
| Religion/Religious Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $38,790 | not reported |
| Music. | Bachelor's Degree | $29,342 | $23,546 |
| Psychology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $29,308 | $26,000 |
| History. | Bachelor's Degree | $23,921 | $25,000 |

## 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 The Catholic University of America by field of study at the official Scorecard: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?131283

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Structured data (JSON-LD), each figure labeled by epistemic status: `/education/the-catholic-university-of-america-dc.jsonld` · all schools: `/education`