How much debt do Colorado State business administration graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $20,967, which ranks 2nd lowest of 13 business administration bachelor's programs in Colorado. That works out to about $222 a month over 10 years.

Is a business administration degree from Colorado State worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 38% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 55%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 2% or less. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several Colorado programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.

Colorado State Business Administration (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do Colorado State business administration graduates stay in Colorado?

Most do. 80% (492 of 613) were working in Colorado one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Business Administration, Management and Operations
Public university
Fort Collins, CO
About 679 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Colorado State business administration graduates earn more than graduates of most business administration programs nationally, $54,846 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $20,967 in federal loans, less than at 82% of business administration programs in the country. Strong value, but not one of the highest-paying business administration degrees in Colorado.

First-year earnings$54,84682nd percentile of 1,105 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$78,28743% more than year one

Median federal debt$20,9672nd lowest of 13 Colorado programs

Debt-to-earnings38%Colorado median 45%, national 55%

How it compares

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

	Colorado State	Colorado	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$54,846	$53,001	$45,396
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$78,287	$70,748	$62,714
Median federal debt at graduation	$20,967	$23,000	$26,000
Debt as share of first-year pay	38%	45%	55%
Programs compared		13	1,105

Five years out, Colorado State graduates earn more than the national figure and about $7,539 more than the Colorado median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Colorado business administration program

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

Colorado StateOther Colorado 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 43% between the first and fifth year.

Colorado State grads, year 1$54,846

Colorado State grads, year 5$78,287

All Colorado business administration grads, year 5$70,748

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 $22,588 against $20,145.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$56,784Median debt $22,588

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$53,976Median debt $20,145

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $222 a month, or 4.9% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (551 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	19–20%
Paying down the balance	47–48%
Paused payments (forbearance)	11–12%
In default	2% 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, 217 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $38,398.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

80% of graduates (492 of 613) were working in Colorado one year after graduating. Prices in the Fort Collins area are about 1% above the national average, so a $54,846 salary here buys what about $54,234 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 business administration, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

General and Operations Managers

$131,840

Median pay in Colorado. 41,870 people work in this job in Colorado. 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%: $65,310Top 10%: $305,040

First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers

$76,600

Median pay in Colorado. 26,100 people work in this job in Colorado. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 127,400 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $49,990Top 10%: $112,250

First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers

$58,200

Median pay in Colorado. 26,390 people work in this job in Colorado. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 113,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $39,440Top 10%: $86,320

Project Management Specialists

$110,050

Median pay in Colorado. 32,390 people work in this job in Colorado. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 76,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $68,990Top 10%: $171,630

About Colorado State

In-state tuition and fees	$13,373 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$34,783 / year
Average net price after aid	$21,279 / year
Admission rate	89%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	67%
Undergraduate students	25,538

Business Administration ranks 9th of 52 bachelor's programs at Colorado State by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer and Information Science ($78,856), Construction Engineering Technology ($78,423), and Electrical Engineering ($78,038).

Other business administration bachelor's programs near Fort Collins

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Colorado StateFort Collins, CO · public		$54,846	$20,967
University of Northern ColoradoGreeley, CO · public	23 mi	$50,739	$21,125
CU BoulderBoulder, CO · public	40 mi	$56,014	$21,500
Regis UniversityDenver, CO · private nonprofit	54 mi	$60,101	$31,000
CSU GlobalDenver, CO · public	58 mi	$69,863	$33,530
Metropolitan State University of DenverDenver, CO · public	58 mi	$53,001	$25,800
CU DenverDenver, CO · public	59 mi	$52,428	$23,000
Colorado Christian UniversityLakewood, CO · private nonprofit	59 mi	$56,606	$24,870

Common questions

The median graduate earns $54,846 one year after graduating and $78,287 five years after. The median across business administration bachelor's programs in Colorado is $53,001.

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 Colorado 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 business administration 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

Business Administration bachelor's programs in Colorado, ranked13 programs by pay and debt Business Administration bachelor's programs in the US, ranked1,105 programs by pay and debt All Colorado State programs, ranked52 programs by pay and debt