San Diego State Geography (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Geography and Cartography
- Public university
- San Diego, CA
- About 42 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release ยท BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
San Diego State geography graduates earn about what geography graduates earn nationally, $38,648 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $14,999 in federal loans, less than at 87% of geography programs in the country. Strong value, but not one of the highest-paying geography degrees in California.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The California and national columns are the medians across all geography bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Debt and first-year pay at every California geography 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.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $159 a month, or 4.9% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
92% of graduates (23 of 25) were working in California one year after graduating. Prices in the San Diego area are about 12% above the national average, so a $38,648 salary here buys what about $34,542 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 geography, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
Surveying and Mapping Technicians
$78,110Median pay in California. 3,340 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 6,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent.
Cartographers and Photogrammetrists
$102,780Median pay in California. 1,450 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 900 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Geographers
$114,460Median pay in California. 80 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 2% from 2025 to 2035, with about 100 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
About San Diego State
Geography ranks 25th of 59 bachelor's programs at San Diego State by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($100,221), Construction Engineering Technology ($81,608), and Computer Engineering ($76,812).
Common questions
The median graduate earns $38,648 one year after graduating. The median across geography bachelor's programs in California is $35,426.
The median federal loan balance is $14,999, which ranks 6th lowest of 11 geography bachelor's programs in California. That works out to about $159 a month over 10 years.
On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 39% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 55%. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several California programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.
Most do. 92% (23 of 25) were working in California 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 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 geography 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