How to check what a school's graduates earn (2026)

The College Scorecard shows what a school’s graduates earn, program by program, one year and four years after they finish. It’s free at collegescorecard.ed.gov and covers graduates who got federal aid. Source · College Scorecard

Two newer federal tools add to it. The FAFSA flags schools whose graduates earn less than high school graduates, and program-level earnings test results start in 2027. Here’s how to read all four sources and which number to trust.

The Scorecard shows earnings for each program

Search a school, open its page and scroll to the fields of study. Each program shows graduates’ median earnings and median federal debt, where the school has enough graduates to report. Source · College Scorecard

Compare the same program across schools, not a school’s overall figure. Four criminal justice bachelor’s programs in the Scorecard data run from $59,343 to $69,546 four years out.

Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study data updated June 10, 2026. Earnings and debt cover every graduate of that field and credential at the school, online and on campus together, so they describe the school's graduates, not what any one student will earn. Earnings are the median for graduates working and not enrolled four years after finishing (2017-18 and 2018-19 graduates, in 2024 dollars); debt is the median federal loan debt of graduates (2018-19 and 2019-20); "Not published" means Scorecard suppresses the figure for a small cohort. Scorecard pages: American Public University System, Liberty University, ASU Digital Immersion, CUNY John Jay College.

Compare the 4-year figure, not the 1-year

Pay right after graduation understates what most programs lead to. In these four programs, graduates’ median pay rose between 49% and 82% from year one to year four.

The two figures come from different groups of graduates, so they aren’t the same people a few years later. Still, the 4-year figure is the one the federal earnings test uses, which makes it the fairest way to compare programs. Source · ED fact sheet

The FAFSA flags schools with lower earnings

First-year undergraduates may see a “lower earnings” notice on their FAFSA Submission Summary. A school gets the flag when its graduates’ median earnings four years out are below the median for high school graduates in its state. Source · ED Homeroom

Schools that serve mostly out-of-state students, or operate in several states, are compared with the national high school median instead. Source · FSA, Lower Earnings Data The flag has no effect on your aid. You can keep the school, remove it or add others.

Four places to check, and what each misses

A five-minute earnings check

1. Find the program on the Scorecard

   Search the school, open fields of study and pick your exact program and credential.

2. Read the 4-year earnings and the debt

   Note both figures, and compare the typical debt with a year’s pay.

3. Compare three schools

   Look up the same program at two or three other schools you’d consider.

4. Check your FAFSA summary

   If you’ve filed, see whether any school you listed carries the lower-earnings flag.

5. Run the payback math

   Use the ROI calculator with the job you want and the program’s real cost.

Frequently asked questions

Why does my program show no earnings?

The Scorecard hides figures when too few graduates had earnings data. Check a broader credential at the same school, or the same program at similar schools.

Do online programs report separately?

No. A school’s online and on-campus graduates in the same field and credential are counted together.

Is a school with the FAFSA flag a bad choice?

Not always. The flag looks at the whole school, so check the program you want. It’s one signal next to cost, fit and your goals.

Your next step is your own payback year

Graduates’ earnings tell you what a program leads to. The ROI calculator turns that into how long the program takes to pay back for you.