Is a accounting degree from Metropolitan State University of Denver worth it?

It depends on your other options. Debt equals 49% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 45%. Compare the cost with other Colorado programs before deciding.

Metropolitan State University of Denver Accounting (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: How much debt do Metropolitan State University of Denver accounting graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $26,320, which ranks 3rd lowest of 7 accounting bachelor's programs in Colorado. That works out to about $279 a month over 10 years.

Q: Do Metropolitan State University of Denver accounting graduates stay in Colorado?

Most do. 90% (141 of 156) were working in Colorado one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Accounting and Related Services
Public university
Denver, CO
About 97 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Metropolitan State University of Denver accounting graduates earn about what accounting graduates earn nationally, $54,030 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $26,320 in federal loans, close to the national median of $24,958. Several Colorado programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$54,03050th percentile of 636 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$72,47434% more than year one

Median federal debt$26,3203rd lowest of 7 Colorado programs

Debt-to-earnings49%Colorado median 55%, national 45%

How it compares

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

	Metropolitan State University of Denver	Colorado	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$54,030	$53,893	$54,059
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$72,474	$66,542	$71,308
Median federal debt at graduation	$26,320	$33,668	$24,958
Debt as share of first-year pay	49%	55%	45%
Programs compared		10	636

Five years out, Metropolitan State University of Denver graduates earn about the national figure and about $5,933 more than the Colorado median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Colorado accounting program

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

Metropolitan State University of DenverOther 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 34% between the first and fifth year.

Metropolitan State University of Denver grads, year 1$54,030

Metropolitan State University of Denver grads, year 5$72,474

All Colorado accounting grads, year 5$66,542

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 $5,739 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$52,610Median debt $26,688

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$58,349Median debt $25,850

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $279 a month, or 6.2% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (115 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	10% or less
Paying down the balance	30–39%
Paused payments (forbearance)	10–19%
In default	10% 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

90% of graduates (141 of 156) were working in Colorado one year after graduating. Prices in the Denver area are about 6% above the national average, so a $54,030 salary here buys what about $51,077 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 accounting, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Accountants and Auditors

$97,030

Median pay in Colorado. 35,410 people work in this job in Colorado. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 115,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $60,760Top 10%: $162,160

Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks

$54,000

Median pay in Colorado. 26,140 people work in this job in Colorado. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 144,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: some college, no degree.

Bottom 10%: $37,250Top 10%: $77,540

Financial Managers

$182,690

Median pay in Colorado. 10,640 people work in this job in Colorado. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 10% from 2025 to 2035, with about 65,600 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $123,900Top 10%: $339,290

Financial and Investment Analysts

$103,850

Median pay in Colorado. 8,040 people work in this job in Colorado. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 24,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $71,590Top 10%: $171,570

About Metropolitan State University of Denver

In-state tuition and fees	$11,124 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$30,684 / year
Average net price after aid	$15,327 / year
Admission rate	99%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	32%
Undergraduate students	15,002

Accounting ranks 8th of 48 bachelor's programs at Metropolitan State University of Denver by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($77,333), Electrical Engineering Technology ($75,966), and Computer Science ($73,874).

Other accounting bachelor's programs near Denver

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Metropolitan State University of DenverDenver, CO · public		$54,030	$26,320
CSU GlobalDenver, CO · public	Under 1 mi	$61,648	$34,167
Regis UniversityDenver, CO · private nonprofit	3 mi	$58,811	$33,668
University of DenverDenver, CO · private nonprofit	5 mi	$67,392	$21,288
Colorado Christian UniversityLakewood, CO · private nonprofit	5 mi	$53,756	$41,848
Colorado Technical UniversityColorado Springs, CO · private for-profit	59 mi	$42,370	$45,340

Common questions

The median graduate earns $54,030 one year after graduating and $72,474 five years after. The median across accounting bachelor's programs in Colorado is $53,893.

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 accounting 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

Accounting bachelor's programs in Colorado, ranked10 programs by pay and debt Accounting bachelor's programs in the US, ranked636 programs by pay and debt All Metropolitan State University of Denver programs, ranked48 programs by pay and debt