How much debt do Lehigh University computer science graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $23,854, which ranks 3rd lowest of 16 computer science bachelor's programs in Pennsylvania. That works out to about $253 a month over 10 years.

Is a computer science degree from Lehigh University worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 27% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 34%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 20% or less.

Lehigh University Computer Science (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do Lehigh University computer science graduates stay in Pennsylvania?

Many leave. 35% (30 of 85) were working in Pennsylvania one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Computer Science
Private nonprofit university
Bethlehem, PA
About 147 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Lehigh University computer science graduates earn more than graduates of most computer science programs nationally, $88,587 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $23,854 in federal loans, close to the national median of $23,308. It is one of the higher-paying computer science degrees in Pennsylvania.

First-year earnings$88,58785th percentile of 331 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$129,86347% more than year one

Median federal debt$23,8543rd lowest of 16 Pennsylvania programs

Debt-to-earnings27%Pennsylvania median 39%, national 34%

How it compares

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

	Lehigh University	Pennsylvania	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$88,587	$66,204	$70,400
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$129,863	$116,867	$105,613
Median federal debt at graduation	$23,854	$27,000	$23,308
Debt as share of first-year pay	27%	39%	34%
Programs compared		18	331

Five years out, Lehigh University graduates earn more than the national figure and about $12,996 more than the Pennsylvania median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Pennsylvania computer science program

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

Lehigh UniversityOther Pennsylvania 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 47% between the first and fifth year.

Lehigh University grads, year 1$88,587

Lehigh University grads, year 5$129,863

All Pennsylvania computer science grads, year 5$116,867

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 $2,997 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$86,262Median debt $20,444

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$89,259Median debt $25,000

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $253 a month, or 3.4% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (73 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	20–39%
Paying down the balance	40–59%
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

35% of graduates (30 of 85) were working in Pennsylvania one year after graduating. Prices in the Allentown area are about the same as the national average.

Careers this field leads to

These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to computer science, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Software Developers

$126,550

Median pay in Pennsylvania. 55,920 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 10% from 2025 to 2035, with about 95,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $77,750Top 10%: $178,080

Computer and Information Systems Managers

$163,910

Median pay in Pennsylvania. 27,060 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 16% from 2025 to 2035, with about 53,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $101,520Top 10%: $246,580

Data Scientists

$106,850

Median pay in Pennsylvania. 13,810 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 35% from 2025 to 2035, with about 24,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $63,340Top 10%: $162,290

Information Security Analysts

$117,770

Median pay in Pennsylvania. 4,660 people work in this job in Pennsylvania. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 21% from 2025 to 2035, with about 14,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $67,840Top 10%: $170,870

About Lehigh University

Tuition and fees	$64,980 / year
Average net price after aid	$36,931 / year
Admission rate	26%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	88%
Undergraduate students	5,898

Computer Science ranks 1st of 21 bachelor's programs at Lehigh University by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer Science ($88,587), Computer and Information Science ($83,356), and Chemical Engineering ($82,435).

Other computer science bachelor's programs near Bethlehem

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Lehigh UniversityBethlehem, PA · private nonprofit		$88,587	$23,854
La Salle UniversityPhiladelphia, PA · private nonprofit	41 mi	$70,783	$27,000
Saint Joseph's UniversityPhiladelphia, PA · private nonprofit	43 mi	$62,647	$27,000
Drexel UniversityPhiladelphia, PA · private nonprofit	46 mi	$86,930	$29,333
UPennPhiladelphia, PA · private nonprofit	46 mi	$124,678	$13,500
Widener UniversityChester, PA · private nonprofit	52 mi	$51,536	$27,000
University of ScrantonScranton, PA · private nonprofit	57 mi	$55,390	$25,500

Common questions

The median graduate earns $88,587 one year after graduating and $129,863 five years after. The median across computer science bachelor's programs in Pennsylvania is $66,204.

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 Pennsylvania 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 computer science 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

Computer Science bachelor's programs in Pennsylvania, ranked18 programs by pay and debt Computer Science bachelor's programs in the US, ranked331 programs by pay and debt All Lehigh University programs, ranked21 programs by pay and debt