How much debt do Cleveland State finance graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $24,365, which ranks 10th lowest of 20 finance bachelor's programs in Ohio. That works out to about $258 a month over 10 years.

Is a finance degree from Cleveland State worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 49% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 44%. Compare the cost with other Ohio programs before deciding.

Do Cleveland State finance graduates stay in Ohio?

Most do. 92% (93 of 101) were working in Ohio one year after graduating.

Cleveland State Finance (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Bachelor's in Finance and Financial Management Services
Public university
Cleveland, OH
About 63 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Cleveland State finance graduates earn about what finance graduates earn nationally, $49,425 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $24,365 in federal loans, close to the national median of $23,250. Several Ohio programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$49,42528th percentile of 407 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$76,07354% more than year one

Median federal debt$24,36510th lowest of 20 Ohio programs

Debt-to-earnings49%Ohio median 44%, national 44%

How it compares

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

	Cleveland State	Ohio	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$49,425	$55,590	$53,373
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$76,073	$77,197	$77,457
Median federal debt at graduation	$24,365	$24,683	$23,250
Debt as share of first-year pay	49%	44%	44%
Programs compared		21	407

Five years out, Cleveland State graduates earn about the national figure and about the same as the Ohio median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Ohio finance program

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

Cleveland StateOther Ohio 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 54% between the first and fifth year.

Cleveland State grads, year 1$49,425

Cleveland State grads, year 5$76,073

All Ohio finance grads, year 5$77,197

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

Does family income change the outcome?

Graduates who received Pell Grants, which go to students from lower-income families, earned slightly more in their first year than other graduates, but borrowed more: a median of $26,000 against $22,050.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$50,075Median debt $26,000

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$47,891Median debt $22,050

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $258 a month, or 6.3% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (74 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	20% or less
Paying down the balance	20–39%
Paused payments (forbearance)	20–39%
In default	20% 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

92% of graduates (93 of 101) were working in Ohio one year after graduating. Prices in the Cleveland area are about 6% below the national average, so a $49,425 salary here buys what about $52,623 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 finance, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

General and Operations Managers

$97,700

Median pay in Ohio. 153,160 people work in this job in Ohio. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 285,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $47,400Top 10%: $216,360

Financial Managers

$140,870

Median pay in Ohio. 27,360 people work in this job in Ohio. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 10% from 2025 to 2035, with about 65,600 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $82,190Top 10%: $273,760

Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents

$73,300

Median pay in Ohio. 13,520 people work in this job in Ohio. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 35,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $47,540Top 10%: $168,100

Financial and Investment Analysts

$94,280

Median pay in Ohio. 9,760 people work in this job in Ohio. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 24,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $57,870Top 10%: $142,420

About Cleveland State

In-state tuition and fees	$12,988 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$18,510 / year
Average net price after aid	$14,764 / year
Admission rate	91%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	51%
Undergraduate students	8,969

Finance ranks 12th of 43 bachelor's programs at Cleveland State by first-year earnings. The top three are Chemical Engineering ($69,043), Electrical Engineering ($68,875), and Computer Engineering ($68,852).

Other finance bachelor's programs near Cleveland

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Cleveland StateCleveland, OH · public		$49,425	$24,365
Case WesternCleveland, OH · private nonprofit	3 mi	$65,784	$26,048
John Carroll UniversityUniversity Heights, OH · private nonprofit	7 mi	$55,590	$27,000
Baldwin Wallace UniversityBerea, OH · private nonprofit	13 mi	$51,347	$27,000
Kent StateKent, OH · public	30 mi	$51,153	$25,000
University of AkronAkron, OH · public	31 mi	$55,946	$23,900
University of Mount UnionAlliance, OH · private nonprofit	51 mi	$51,503	$27,000
Youngstown StateYoungstown, OH · public	60 mi	$44,973	$21,935

Common questions

The median graduate earns $49,425 one year after graduating and $76,073 five years after. The median across finance bachelor's programs in Ohio is $55,590.

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 Ohio 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 finance 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

Finance bachelor's programs in Ohio, ranked21 programs by pay and debt Finance bachelor's programs in the US, ranked407 programs by pay and debt All Cleveland State programs, ranked43 programs by pay and debt