How much debt do Cleveland State human resources graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $27,000, which ranks 10th lowest of 14 human resources bachelor's programs in Ohio. That works out to about $286 a month over 10 years.

Is a human resources degree from Cleveland State worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 66% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 53%. Compare the cost with other Ohio programs before deciding.

Do Cleveland State human resources graduates stay in Ohio?

Most do. 93% (62 of 67) were working in Ohio one year after graduating.

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

Bachelor's in Human Resources Management and Services
Public university
Cleveland, OH
About 38 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Cleveland State human resources graduates earn less than graduates of most human resources programs nationally, $40,869 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $27,000 in federal loans, close to the national median of $26,442. Several Ohio programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$40,8697th percentile of 151 programs nationally

Median federal debt$27,00010th lowest of 14 Ohio programs

Debt-to-earnings66%Ohio median 57%, national 53%

How it compares

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

	Cleveland State	Ohio	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$40,869	$47,941	$50,383
Median federal debt at graduation	$27,000	$25,744	$26,442
Debt as share of first-year pay	66%	57%	53%
Programs compared		14	151

Debt and first-year pay at every Ohio human resources 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.

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $286 a month, or 8.4% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (57 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	20% or less
Paying down the balance	20% or less
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

93% of graduates (62 of 67) were working in Ohio one year after graduating. Prices in the Cleveland area are about 6% below the national average, so a $40,869 salary here buys what about $43,513 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 human resources, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Human Resources Specialists

$70,180

Median pay in Ohio. 33,500 people work in this job in Ohio. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 73,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $45,950Top 10%: $118,340

Training and Development Specialists

$64,780

Median pay in Ohio. 17,690 people work in this job in Ohio. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 11% from 2025 to 2035, with about 46,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $33,450Top 10%: $108,030

Compliance Officers

$75,030

Median pay in Ohio. 11,240 people work in this job in Ohio. 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%: $47,230Top 10%: $124,230

Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors

$61,760

Median pay in Ohio. 13,250 people work in this job in Ohio. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 3% from 2025 to 2035, with about 27,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: master's degree.

Bottom 10%: $43,010Top 10%: $99,810

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

Human Resources ranks 20th 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 human resources bachelor's programs near Cleveland

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Cleveland StateCleveland, OH · public		$40,869	$27,000
John Carroll UniversityUniversity Heights, OH · private nonprofit	7 mi	$50,938	$20,000
Kent StateKent, OH · public	30 mi	$47,983	$22,888
University of AkronAkron, OH · public	31 mi	$51,422	$20,750
Walsh UniversityNorth Canton, OH · private nonprofit	46 mi	$80,566	$29,812
Youngstown StateYoungstown, OH · public	60 mi	$45,244	$23,018

Common questions

The median graduate earns $40,869 one year after graduating. The median across human resources bachelor's programs in Ohio is $47,941.

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 human resources 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

Human Resources bachelor's programs in Ohio, ranked14 programs by pay and debt Human Resources bachelor's programs in the US, ranked151 programs by pay and debt All Cleveland State programs, ranked43 programs by pay and debt