Saint Paul College Cosmetology (Certificate): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Certificate in Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services
- Public college
- Saint Paul, MN
- About 118 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
Saint Paul College cosmetology graduates earn more than graduates of most cosmetology programs nationally, $32,987 in their first year. Debt is high. The typical graduate leaves with $14,250 in federal loans, more than at 89% of cosmetology programs in the country. It is one of the higher-paying cosmetology programs in Minnesota.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The Minnesota and national columns are the medians across all cosmetology certificate programs that report the figure.
Five years out, Saint Paul College graduates earn about the national figure but about $2,743 less than the Minnesota median.
Debt and first-year pay at every Minnesota cosmetology program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Minnesota 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 falls about 33% between the first and fifth year. Hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists in Minnesota earn a median of $39,170 across all experience levels, which shows how much room there is to grow after the first few years.
Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate. BLS figures cover hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists at every experience level.
Does family income change the outcome?
Graduates who received Pell Grants, which go to students from lower-income families, earned slightly more in their first year than other graduates, but borrowed more: a median of $18,614 against $11,000.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $151 a month, or 5.5% 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.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
93% of graduates (67 of 72) were working in Minnesota one year after graduating. Prices in the Minneapolis area are about 5% above the national average, so a $32,987 salary here buys what about $31,470 buys in a typical US city.
The median Minnesota cosmetologist earns $39,170, compared with a national median of $35,790. After adjusting for Minnesota prices, that pay is worth about $39,718, which puts Minnesota ahead.
Careers this field leads to
These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to cosmetology, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
Hairdressers, Hairstylists, and Cosmetologists
$39,170Median pay in Minnesota. 5,320 people work in this job in Minnesota. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 8% from 2025 to 2035, with about 73,400 openings a year. Typical education to start: postsecondary nondegree award.
Manicurists and Pedicurists
$36,040Median pay in Minnesota. 3,260 people work in this job in Minnesota. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 9% from 2025 to 2035, with about 21,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: postsecondary nondegree award.
First-Line Supervisors of Personal Service Workers
$51,160Median pay in Minnesota. 2,530 people work in this job in Minnesota. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 12,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.
Skincare Specialists
$44,430Median pay in Minnesota. 920 people work in this job in Minnesota. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 9% from 2025 to 2035, with about 14,200 openings a year. Typical education to start: postsecondary nondegree award.
About Saint Paul College
Cosmetology ranks 6th of 8 certificate programs at Saint Paul College by first-year earnings. The top three are Welding and Machining ($50,842), Practical Nursing ($44,393), and Vehicle Maintenance and Repair ($41,572).
Other cosmetology certificate programs near Saint Paul
Common questions
The median graduate earns $32,987 one year after graduating and $22,107 five years after. Hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists in the Minneapolis metro area earn a median of $46,310 across all experience levels.
The median federal loan balance is $14,250, which ranks 7th lowest of 7 cosmetology certificate programs in Minnesota. That works out to about $151 a month over 10 years.
On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 43% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 55%.
Most do. 93% (67 of 72) were working in Minnesota one year after graduating.
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 Minnesota 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 cosmetology 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