How much debt do Cal State LA public health graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $12,500, which ranks 2nd lowest of 16 public health bachelor's programs in California. That works out to about $133 a month over 10 years.

Is a public health degree from Cal State LA worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 31% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 63%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 10% or less. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several California programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.

Cal State LA Public Health (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do Cal State LA public health graduates stay in California?

Most do. 96% (220 of 229) were working in California one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Public Health
Public university
Los Angeles, CA
About 162 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Cal State LA public health graduates earn about what public health graduates earn nationally, $40,750 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $12,500 in federal loans, less than at 97% of public health programs in the country. Strong value, but not one of the highest-paying public health degrees in California.

First-year earnings$40,75066th percentile of 186 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$56,29038% more than year one

Median federal debt$12,5002nd lowest of 16 California programs

Debt-to-earnings31%California median 42%, national 63%

How it compares

Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The California and national columns are the medians across all public health bachelor's programs that report the figure.

	Cal State LA	California	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$40,750	$39,078	$37,516
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$56,290	$63,083	$56,608
Median federal debt at graduation	$12,500	$15,265	$25,000
Debt as share of first-year pay	31%	42%	63%
Programs compared		16	186

Five years out, Cal State LA graduates earn about the national figure but about $6,793 less than the California median. Several California programs with higher debt show higher pay by the five-year mark.

Debt and first-year pay at every California public health 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.

What graduates earn over time

Pay rises about 38% between the first and fifth year.

Cal State LA grads, year 1$40,750

Cal State LA grads, year 5$56,290

All California public health grads, year 5$63,083

Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $133 a month, or 3.9% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (133 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	10% or less
Paying down the balance	20–29%
Paused payments (forbearance)	10–19%
In default	10% or less

The government publishes these as ranges to protect privacy. They were measured in 2018 to 2020, partly during the pandemic pause on federal loan payments, so the forbearance share may be higher than usual.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

96% of graduates (220 of 229) were working in California one year after graduating. Prices in the Los Angeles area are about 14% above the national average, so a $40,750 salary here buys what about $35,882 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 public health, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Medical and Health Services Managers

$141,480

Median pay in California. 75,090 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 24% from 2025 to 2035, with about 62,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $72,800Top 10%: $274,660

Compliance Officers

$96,980

Median pay in California. 49,880 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 32,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $57,530Top 10%: $158,280

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists

$136,990

Median pay in California. 29,830 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 13% from 2025 to 2035, with about 10,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: doctoral or professional degree.

Bottom 10%: $81,320Top 10%: $180,060

Occupational Health and Safety Specialists

$102,840

Median pay in California. 16,230 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 19% from 2025 to 2035, with about 17,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $59,760Top 10%: $161,300

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

Public Health ranks 14th 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 public health bachelor's programs near Los Angeles

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Cal State LALos Angeles, CA · public		$40,750	$12,500
USCLos Angeles, CA · private nonprofit	7 mi	$36,300	$15,250
Cal State Long BeachLong Beach, CA · public	20 mi	$32,880	$13,480
Cal State FullertonFullerton, CA · public	21 mi	$34,909	$13,500
CSUNNorthridge, CA · public	24 mi	$39,011	$14,000
Chapman UniversityOrange, CA · private nonprofit	26 mi	$25,007	$23,250
UC IrvineIrvine, CA · public	34 mi	$35,463	$17,285
California Baptist UniversityRiverside, CA · private nonprofit	44 mi	$46,263	$35,287

Common questions

The median graduate earns $40,750 one year after graduating and $56,290 five years after. The median across public health bachelor's programs in California is $39,078.

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 public health 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

Public Health bachelor's programs in California, ranked16 programs by pay and debt Public Health bachelor's programs in the US, ranked186 programs by pay and debt All Cal State LA programs, ranked42 programs by pay and debt