How much debt do Duke University psychology graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $15,415, which ranks 2nd lowest of 24 psychology bachelor's programs in North Carolina. That works out to about $163 a month over 10 years.

Is a psychology degree from Duke University worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 46% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 78%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 20% or less. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several North Carolina programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.

Duke University Psychology (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Bachelor's in Psychology, General
Private nonprofit university
Durham, NC

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Duke University psychology graduates earn about what psychology graduates earn nationally, $33,559 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $15,415 in federal loans, less than at 95% of psychology programs in the country. It is one of the higher-paying psychology degrees in North Carolina.

First-year earnings$33,55967th percentile of 875 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$72,515116% more than year one

Median federal debt$15,4152nd lowest of 24 North Carolina programs

Debt-to-earnings46%North Carolina median 86%, national 78%

How it compares

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

	Duke University	North Carolina	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$33,559	$29,409	$31,479
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$72,515	$44,066	$49,019
Median federal debt at graduation	$15,415	$26,500	$25,624
Debt as share of first-year pay	46%	86%	78%
Programs compared		24	875

Five years out, Duke University graduates earn more than the national figure and about $28,449 more than the North Carolina median.

Debt and first-year pay at every North Carolina psychology program

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

Duke UniversityOther North Carolina 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 116% between the first and fifth year.

Duke University grads, year 1$33,559

Duke University grads, year 5$72,515

All North Carolina psychology grads, year 5$44,066

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 $19,362 less in their first year than other graduates. Students who expect to rely on grants should weigh this gap.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$28,124

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$47,486

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $163 a month, or 5.8% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (51 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	20% or less
Paying down the balance	20–39%
Paused payments (forbearance)	20% or less
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

Prices in the Durham area are about 2% below the national average, so a $33,559 salary here buys what about $34,394 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

$92,130

Median pay in North Carolina. 2,770 people work in this job in North Carolina. 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%: $52,890Top 10%: $213,160

Social Science Research Assistants

$63,710

Median pay in North Carolina. 2,930 people work in this job in North Carolina. 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%: $49,980Top 10%: $81,650

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 Duke University

Tuition and fees	$68,758 / year
Average net price after aid	$29,612 / year
Admission rate	6%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	97%
Undergraduate students	6,442

Psychology ranks 18th of 23 bachelor's programs at Duke University by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer Science ($133,356), Mathematics ($121,088), and Computer Engineering ($111,145).

Other psychology bachelor's programs near Durham

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Duke UniversityDurham, NC · private nonprofit		$33,559	$15,415
North Carolina Central UniversityDurham, NC · public	3 mi	$29,400	$29,727
UNC Chapel HillChapel Hill, NC · public	9 mi	$31,804	$14,253
Meredith CollegeRaleigh, NC · private nonprofit	20 mi	$28,501	$27,000
NC StateRaleigh, NC · public	21 mi	$29,738	$22,373
William Peace UniversityRaleigh, NC · private nonprofit	22 mi	$28,202	$27,000
Elon UniversityElon, NC · private nonprofit	32 mi	$36,668	$23,250
Campbell UniversityBuies Creek, NC · private nonprofit	42 mi	$33,892	$27,000
NC A&TGreensboro, NC · public	47 mi	$27,653	$27,000

Common questions

The median graduate earns $33,559 one year after graduating and $72,515 five years after. The median across psychology bachelor's programs in North Carolina is $29,409.

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 North Carolina 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 North Carolina, ranked24 programs by pay and debt Psychology bachelor's programs in the US, ranked875 programs by pay and debt All Duke University programs, ranked23 programs by pay and debt