How much debt do Hamline University psychology graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $24,512, which ranks 8th lowest of 23 psychology bachelor's programs in Minnesota. That works out to about $260 a month over 10 years.

Is a psychology degree from Hamline University worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 65% 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 Minnesota programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.

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

Q: Do Hamline University psychology graduates stay in Minnesota?

Most do. 90% (60 of 67) were working in Minnesota one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Psychology, General
Private nonprofit university
Saint Paul, MN
About 54 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Hamline University psychology graduates earn more than graduates of most psychology programs nationally, $37,872 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $24,512 in federal loans, close to the national median of $25,624. Several Minnesota programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$37,87291st percentile of 875 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$47,79826% more than year one

Median federal debt$24,5128th lowest of 23 Minnesota programs

Debt-to-earnings65%Minnesota median 70%, national 78%

How it compares

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

	Hamline University	Minnesota	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$37,872	$36,243	$31,479
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$47,798	$50,991	$49,019
Median federal debt at graduation	$24,512	$26,024	$25,624
Debt as share of first-year pay	65%	70%	78%
Programs compared		23	875

Five years out, Hamline University graduates earn about the national figure but about $3,193 less than the Minnesota median. Several Minnesota programs with higher debt show higher pay by the five-year mark.

Debt and first-year pay at every Minnesota psychology program

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

Hamline UniversityOther Minnesota 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 26% between the first and fifth year.

Hamline University grads, year 1$37,872

Hamline University grads, year 5$47,798

All Minnesota psychology grads, year 5$50,991

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 about the same in their first year as other graduates, but borrowed more: a median of $24,762 against $22,010.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$37,757Median debt $24,762

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$37,616Median debt $22,010

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $260 a month, or 8.2% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (87 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. Separately, 33 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $31,799.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

90% of graduates (60 of 67) were working in Minnesota one year after graduating. Prices in the Minneapolis area are about 5% above the national average, so a $37,872 salary here buys what about $36,130 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

$107,030

Median pay in Minnesota. 1,290 people work in this job in Minnesota. 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%: $62,290Top 10%: $163,610

Social Science Research Assistants

$44,920

Median pay in Minnesota. 300 people work in this job in Minnesota. 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%: $38,080Top 10%: $68,070

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 Hamline University

Tuition and fees	$50,004 / year
Average net price after aid	$20,744 / year
Admission rate	88%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	60%
Undergraduate students	1,776

Psychology ranks 7th of 14 bachelor's programs at Hamline University by first-year earnings. The top three are Business Administration ($51,761), Chemistry ($50,007), and Communications ($42,201).

Other psychology bachelor's programs near Saint Paul

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Hamline UniversitySaint Paul, MN · private nonprofit		$37,872	$24,512
Concordia University-Saint PaulSaint Paul, MN · private nonprofit	1 mi	$36,243	$27,000
University of St Thomas (Minnesota)Saint Paul, MN · private nonprofit	2 mi	$38,396	$27,000
St Catherine UniversitySaint Paul, MN · private nonprofit	3 mi	$32,426	$29,532
University of MinnesotaMinneapolis, MN · public	3 mi	$36,294	$20,674
Augsburg UniversityMinneapolis, MN · private nonprofit	4 mi	$29,743	$27,750
Metropolitan State UniversitySaint Paul, MN · public	4 mi	$40,958	$30,155
University of Northwestern-St PaulSaint Paul, MN · private nonprofit	5 mi	$37,758	$24,749
Walden UniversityMinneapolis, MN · private for-profit	5 mi	$37,944	$52,781

Common questions

The median graduate earns $37,872 one year after graduating and $47,798 five years after. The median across psychology bachelor's programs in Minnesota is $36,243.

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 Minnesota 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 Minnesota, ranked23 programs by pay and debt Psychology bachelor's programs in the US, ranked875 programs by pay and debt All Hamline University programs, ranked16 programs by pay and debt