How much debt do Ottawa University-Ottawa psychology graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $27,562, which ranks 8th lowest of 10 psychology bachelor's programs in Kansas. That works out to about $292 a month over 10 years.

Is a psychology degree from Ottawa University-Ottawa worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 70% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 78%.

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

Bachelor's in Psychology, General
Private nonprofit university
Ottawa, KS

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

Ottawa University-Ottawa psychology graduates earn more than graduates of most psychology programs nationally, $39,596 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $27,562 in federal loans, more than at 87% of psychology programs in the country. It is one of the higher-paying psychology degrees in Kansas.

First-year earnings$39,59695th percentile of 875 programs nationally

Median federal debt$27,5628th lowest of 10 Kansas programs

Debt-to-earnings70%Kansas median 68%, national 78%

How it compares

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

	Ottawa University-Ottawa	Kansas	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$39,596	$35,793	$31,479
Median federal debt at graduation	$27,562	$26,222	$25,624
Debt as share of first-year pay	70%	68%	78%
Programs compared		10	875

Debt and first-year pay at every Kansas psychology program

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

Ottawa University-OttawaOther Kansas programs

Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $292 a month, or 8.8% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

Prices in the parts of Kansas outside metro areas are about 14% below the national average, so a $39,596 salary here buys what about $46,085 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

$76,690

Median pay in Kansas. 400 people work in this job in Kansas. 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%: $47,620Top 10%: $151,800

Social Science Research Assistants

$67,740

Median pay in Kansas. 170 people work in this job in Kansas. 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%: $43,140Top 10%: $67,740

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 Ottawa University-Ottawa

Tuition and fees	$35,880 / year
Average net price after aid	$27,963 / year
Admission rate	83%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	28%
Undergraduate students	870

Psychology ranks 7th of 10 bachelor's programs at Ottawa University-Ottawa by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($76,207), Health and Medical Administration ($75,385), and Accounting ($51,664).

Other psychology bachelor's programs near Ottawa

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
Ottawa University-OttawaOttawa, KS · private nonprofit		$39,596	$27,562
University of KansasLawrence, KS · public	25 mi	$36,913	$22,415
Washburn UniversityTopeka, KS · public	38 mi	$38,264	$25,249
Avila UniversityKansas City, MO · private nonprofit	42 mi	$36,957	$31,000
UMKCKansas City, MO · public	47 mi	$32,224	$21,000
Rockhurst UniversityKansas City, MO · private nonprofit	48 mi	$36,152	$25,000
University of Saint MaryLeavenworth, KS · private nonprofit	51 mi	$31,177	$31,000
Emporia StateEmporia, KS · public	51 mi	$35,389	$19,500
Park UniversityParkville, MO · private nonprofit	51 mi	$30,973	$29,577

Common questions

The median graduate earns $39,596 one year after graduating. The median across psychology bachelor's programs in Kansas is $35,793.

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 Kansas 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 Kansas, ranked10 programs by pay and debt Psychology bachelor's programs in the US, ranked875 programs by pay and debt All Ottawa University-Ottawa programs, ranked10 programs by pay and debt