San Francisco State Computer and Information Science (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

  • Bachelor's in Computer and Information Sciences, General
  • Public university
  • San Francisco, CA

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

San Francisco State computer and information science graduates earn about what computer and information science graduates earn nationally, $52,288 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $19,716 in federal loans, less than at 84% of computer and information science programs in the country. Strong value, but not one of the highest-paying computer and information science degrees in California.

First-year earnings$52,28828th percentile of 402 programs nationally
Earnings after 5 years$82,64858% more than year one
Median federal debt$19,71610th lowest of 15 California programs
Debt-to-earnings38%California median 34%, national 40%

How it compares

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

Five years out, San Francisco State graduates earn less than the national figure and about $4,588 less than the California median.

Debt and first-year pay at every California computer and information science program

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

San Francisco StateOther California 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 58% between the first and fifth year.

San Francisco State grads, year 1$52,288
San Francisco State grads, year 5$82,648
All California computer and information science grads, year 5$87,236

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 $9,131 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$50,643Median debt $18,714
Other graduates, year 1 earnings$59,774Median debt $22,575

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $209 a month, or 4.8% 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 (142 of 153) were working in California one year after graduating. Prices in the San Francisco area are about 16% above the national average, so a $52,288 salary here buys what about $45,227 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 computer and information science, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Software Developers

$174,410

Median pay in California. 284,390 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 10% from 2025 to 2035, with about 95,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $105,060Top 10%: $272,670

Computer and Information Systems Managers

$218,290

Median pay in California. 94,720 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 16% from 2025 to 2035, with about 53,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $129,970Top 10%: $325,970

Computer Systems Analysts

$127,720

Median pay in California. 59,060 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 8% from 2025 to 2035, with about 32,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $79,110Top 10%: $181,770

Network and Computer Systems Administrators

$106,440

Median pay in California. 26,170 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 13,400 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $72,400Top 10%: $166,730

About San Francisco State

Computer and Information Science ranks 10th of 58 bachelor's programs at San Francisco State by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($117,532), Mechanical Engineering ($72,647), and Civil Engineering ($68,256).

Other computer and information science bachelor's programs near San Francisco

Common questions

The median graduate earns $52,288 one year after graduating and $82,648 five years after. The median across computer and information science bachelor's programs in California is $53,881.

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 computer and information science program.

Sources

  1. U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
  2. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
  3. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
  4. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024

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