Pepperdine University International Studies (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in International/Globalization Studies
- Private nonprofit university
- Malibu, CA
- About 18 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
Pepperdine University international studies graduates earn about what international studies graduates earn nationally, $36,920 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $26,000 in federal loans, more than at 80% of international studies programs in the country. Several California programs report higher pay.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The California and national columns are the medians across all international studies bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, Pepperdine University graduates earn more than the national figure but about $6,224 less than the California median.
Debt and first-year pay at every California international studies program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the California medians.
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 57% between the first and fifth year.
Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $276 a month, or 9.0% 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, 21 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $53,412.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
Prices in the Los Angeles area are about 14% above the national average, so a $36,920 salary here buys what about $32,510 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 international studies, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
Political Scientists
$142,080Median pay nationwide. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 400 openings a year. Typical education to start: master's degree.
About Pepperdine University
International Studies ranks 7th of 12 bachelor's programs at Pepperdine University by first-year earnings. The top three are Business Administration ($69,751), Economics ($54,267), and Communications ($48,398).
Other international studies bachelor's programs near Malibu
Common questions
The median graduate earns $36,920 one year after graduating and $58,137 five years after. The median across international studies bachelor's programs in California is $34,246.
The median federal loan balance is $26,000, which ranks 9th lowest of 9 international studies bachelor's programs in California. That works out to about $276 a month over 10 years.
It depends on your other options. Debt equals 70% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 69%. Compare the cost with other California programs before deciding.
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 California 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 international studies 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