IU Indianapolis Business (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

  • Bachelor's in Business/Commerce, General
  • Public university
  • Indianapolis, IN
  • About 267 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

IU Indianapolis business graduates earn more than graduates of most business programs nationally, $52,467 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $22,003 in federal loans, less than at 79% of business programs in the country. Strong value, but not one of the highest-paying business degrees in Indiana.

First-year earnings$52,46777th percentile of 206 programs nationally
Earnings after 5 years$67,24628% more than year one
Median federal debt$22,0033rd lowest of 11 Indiana programs
Debt-to-earnings42%Indiana median 48%, national 54%

How it compares

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

Five years out, IU Indianapolis graduates earn more than the national figure and about $5,820 more than the Indiana median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Indiana business program

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

IU IndianapolisOther Indiana 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 28% between the first and fifth year.

IU Indianapolis grads, year 1$52,467
IU Indianapolis grads, year 5$67,246
All Indiana business grads, year 5$61,426

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 $2,087 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$51,427Median debt $21,747
Other graduates, year 1 earnings$53,514Median debt $22,276

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $233 a month, or 5.3% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

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, 119 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $16,600.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

86% of graduates (618 of 717) were working in Indiana one year after graduating. Prices in the Indianapolis area are about 4% below the national average, so a $52,467 salary here buys what about $54,827 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, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

General and Operations Managers

$108,170

Median pay in Indiana. 47,180 people work in this job in Indiana. 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%: $53,820Top 10%: $248,610

Project Management Specialists

$95,020

Median pay in Indiana. 11,970 people work in this job in Indiana. 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%: $59,120Top 10%: $149,350

Management Analysts

$95,560

Median pay in Indiana. 11,770 people work in this job in Indiana. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 10% from 2025 to 2035, with about 94,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $55,160Top 10%: $158,820

Sales Managers

$131,470

Median pay in Indiana. 9,700 people work in this job in Indiana. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 47,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $69,570Top 10%: $231,350

About IU Indianapolis

Business ranks 17th of 49 bachelor's programs at IU Indianapolis by first-year earnings. The top three are Electrical Engineering ($73,122), Computer Engineering ($71,986), and Biomedical Engineering ($71,852).

Other business bachelor's programs near Indianapolis

Common questions

The median graduate earns $52,467 one year after graduating and $67,246 five years after. The median across business bachelor's programs in Indiana is $47,406.

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 Indiana 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 program.

Sources

  1. U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
  2. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
  3. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
  4. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024

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