Is a ethnic, cultural, and gender studies degree from Cal State LA worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 83% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 69%. Compare the cost with other California programs before deciding.

Cal State LA Ethnic, Cultural, and Gender Studies (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: How much debt do Cal State LA ethnic, cultural, and gender studies graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $22,500, which ranks 17th lowest of 20 ethnic, cultural, and gender studies bachelor's programs in California. That works out to about $239 a month over 10 years.

Q: Do Cal State LA ethnic, cultural, and gender studies graduates stay in California?

Most do. 100% (26 of 26) were working in California one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies
Public university
Los Angeles, CA
About 27 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Cal State LA ethnic, cultural, and gender studies graduates earn less than graduates of most ethnic, cultural, and gender studies programs nationally, $27,058 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $22,500 in federal loans, close to the national median of $22,938. Several California programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$27,05825th percentile of 84 programs nationally

Median federal debt$22,50017th lowest of 20 California programs

Debt-to-earnings83%California median 57%, national 69%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The California and national columns are the medians across all ethnic, cultural, and gender studies bachelor's programs that report the figure.

	Cal State LA	California	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$27,058	$30,984	$31,311
Median federal debt at graduation	$22,500	$18,638	$22,938
Debt as share of first-year pay	83%	57%	69%
Programs compared		21	84

Debt and first-year pay at every California ethnic, cultural, and gender studies program

Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the California medians.

Cal State LAOther California programs

Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $239 a month, or 10.6% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

100% of graduates (26 of 26) were working in California one year after graduating. Prices in the Los Angeles area are about 14% above the national average, so a $27,058 salary here buys what about $23,826 buys in a typical US city.

Careers this field leads to

These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to ethnic, cultural, and gender studies, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Interpreters and Translators

$70,770

Median pay in California. 5,560 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 6,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $49,530Top 10%: $119,810

About Cal State LA

In-state tuition and fees	$7,160 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$19,760 / year
Average net price after aid	$3,967 / year
Admission rate	91%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	53%
Undergraduate students	19,562

Ethnic, Cultural, and Gender Studies ranks 35th of 42 bachelor's programs at Cal State LA by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($98,811), Civil Engineering ($73,178), and Electrical Engineering ($63,981).

Other ethnic, cultural, and gender studies bachelor's programs near Los Angeles

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Cal State LALos Angeles, CA · public		$27,058	$22,500
Loyola Marymount UniversityLos Angeles, CA · private nonprofit	16 mi	$26,868	$23,149
UCLALos Angeles, CA · public	16 mi	$29,914	$15,000
Cal State Long BeachLong Beach, CA · public	20 mi	$27,726	$12,187
Cal Poly PomonaPomona, CA · public	20 mi	$40,253	$13,486
Cal State FullertonFullerton, CA · public	21 mi	$25,305	$19,000
CSUNNorthridge, CA · public	24 mi	$26,767	$15,000
UC IrvineIrvine, CA · public	34 mi	$26,712	$18,998
UC RiversideRiverside, CA · public	49 mi	$31,443	$23,000

Common questions

The median graduate earns $27,058 one year after graduating. The median across ethnic, cultural, and gender studies bachelor's programs in California is $30,984.

About this data

Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid (grants or loans).
Earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school. Graduates who went straight to further study are not included.
Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of California comparisons when their main campus is in another state.
Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
School-level numbers like tuition, admission rate, and graduation rate are for the whole school, not the ethnic, cultural, and gender studies program.

Sources

U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024

Ethnic, Cultural, and Gender Studies bachelor's programs in California, ranked21 programs by pay and debt Ethnic, Cultural, and Gender Studies bachelor's programs in the US, ranked84 programs by pay and debt All Cal State LA programs, ranked42 programs by pay and debt