How much debt do College of the Holy Cross psychology graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $27,000, which ranks 17th lowest of 32 psychology bachelor's programs in Massachusetts. That works out to about $286 a month over 10 years.

Is a psychology degree from College of the Holy Cross worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 66% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 78%, 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 Massachusetts programs report higher pay.

College of the Holy Cross Psychology (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do College of the Holy Cross psychology graduates stay in Massachusetts?

Most do. 58% (64 of 110) were working in Massachusetts one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Psychology, General
Private nonprofit college
Worcester, MA
About 125 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

College of the Holy Cross psychology graduates earn more than graduates of most psychology programs nationally, $41,099 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $27,000 in federal loans, close to the national median of $25,624. It is one of the higher-paying psychology degrees in Massachusetts.

First-year earnings$41,09997th percentile of 875 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$63,31154% more than year one

Median federal debt$27,00017th lowest of 32 Massachusetts programs

Debt-to-earnings66%Massachusetts median 74%, national 78%

How it compares

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

	College of the Holy Cross	Massachusetts	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$41,099	$36,683	$31,479
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$63,311	$55,286	$49,019
Median federal debt at graduation	$27,000	$26,905	$25,624
Debt as share of first-year pay	66%	74%	78%
Programs compared		32	875

Five years out, College of the Holy Cross graduates earn more than the national figure and about $8,025 more than the Massachusetts median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Massachusetts psychology program

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

College of the Holy CrossOther Massachusetts 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.

College of the Holy Cross grads, year 1$41,099

College of the Holy Cross grads, year 5$63,311

All Massachusetts psychology grads, year 5$55,286

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 more in their first year than other graduates. They also borrowed less. At this program, the outcome does not look worse for students with less money.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$46,422Median debt $23,909

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$38,233Median debt $27,000

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 (114 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	10–19%
Paying down the balance	40–49%
Paused payments (forbearance)	10% or less
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. Separately, 23 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $39,900.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

58% of graduates (64 of 110) were working in Massachusetts one year after graduating. Prices in the Worcester area are about 3% above the national average, so a $41,099 salary here buys what about $40,088 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 psychology, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists

$115,180

Median pay in Massachusetts. 2,860 people work in this job in Massachusetts. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 12% from 2025 to 2035, with about 4,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: doctoral or professional degree.

Bottom 10%: $60,250Top 10%: $216,570

Social Science Research Assistants

$63,480

Median pay in Massachusetts. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 4,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $49,500Top 10%: $82,130

Industrial-Organizational Psychologists

$193,950

Median pay nationwide. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 300 openings a year. Typical education to start: master's degree.

About College of the Holy Cross

Tuition and fees	$64,500 / year
Average net price after aid	$38,782 / year
Admission rate	18%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	87%
Undergraduate students	3,106

Psychology ranks 13th of 14 bachelor's programs at College of the Holy Cross by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer Science ($74,842), Accounting ($73,234), and Economics ($69,288).

Other psychology bachelor's programs near Worcester

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
College of the Holy CrossWorcester, MA · private nonprofit		$41,099	$27,000
Clark UniversityWorcester, MA · private nonprofit	1 mi	$33,264	$26,000
Worcester StateWorcester, MA · public	3 mi	$38,169	$24,394
Assumption UniversityWorcester, MA · private nonprofit	4 mi	$38,697	$27,000
Framingham StateFramingham, MA · public	19 mi	$34,353	$26,810
Dean CollegeFranklin, MA · private nonprofit	23 mi	$32,218	$27,000
Fitchburg StateFitchburg, MA · public	24 mi	$37,545	$26,125
Lasell UniversityNewton, MA · private nonprofit	30 mi	$33,105	$27,000
Rhode Island CollegeProvidence, RI · public	32 mi	$33,694	$22,723

Common questions

The median graduate earns $41,099 one year after graduating and $63,311 five years after. The median across psychology bachelor's programs in Massachusetts is $36,683.

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 Massachusetts 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 psychology 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

Psychology bachelor's programs in Massachusetts, ranked32 programs by pay and debt Psychology bachelor's programs in the US, ranked875 programs by pay and debt All College of the Holy Cross programs, ranked14 programs by pay and debt