How much debt do CU Denver history graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $23,750, which ranks 4th lowest of 7 history bachelor's programs in Colorado. That works out to about $252 a month over 10 years.

Is a history degree from CU Denver worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 61% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 73%.

CU Denver History (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do CU Denver history graduates stay in Colorado?

Most do. 95% (18 of 19) were working in Colorado one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in History
Public university
Denver, CO
About 16 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

CU Denver history graduates earn more than graduates of most history programs nationally, $38,627 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $23,750 in federal loans, close to the national median of $23,973. It is one of the higher-paying history degrees in Colorado.

First-year earnings$38,62783rd percentile of 370 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$45,54618% more than year one

Median federal debt$23,7504th lowest of 7 Colorado programs

Debt-to-earnings61%Colorado median 64%, national 73%

How it compares

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

	CU Denver	Colorado	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$38,627	$36,909	$31,710
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$45,546	$46,418	$50,314
Median federal debt at graduation	$23,750	$23,750	$23,973
Debt as share of first-year pay	61%	64%	73%
Programs compared		8	370

Five years out, CU Denver graduates earn less than the national figure and about the same as the Colorado median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Colorado history program

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

CU DenverOther Colorado 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 18% between the first and fifth year.

CU Denver grads, year 1$38,627

CU Denver grads, year 5$45,546

All Colorado history grads, year 5$46,418

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 $252 a month, or 7.8% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

95% of graduates (18 of 19) were working in Colorado one year after graduating. Prices in the Denver area are about 6% above the national average, so a $38,627 salary here buys what about $36,516 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 history, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education

$72,900

Median pay in Colorado. 18,310 people work in this job in Colorado. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 63,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $48,970Top 10%: $101,300

Natural Sciences Managers

$152,730

Median pay in Colorado. 1,640 people work in this job in Colorado. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 8% from 2025 to 2035, with about 9,200 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $89,900Top 10%: $289,970

Tour and Travel Guides

$42,840

Median pay in Colorado. 2,150 people work in this job in Colorado. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 11,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent.

Bottom 10%: $31,380Top 10%: $55,600

Museum Technicians and Conservators

$51,990

Median pay in Colorado. 290 people work in this job in Colorado. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 1,600 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $36,250Top 10%: $77,870

About CU Denver

In-state tuition and fees	$10,383 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$29,391 / year
Average net price after aid	$11,900 / year
Admission rate	75%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	46%
Undergraduate students	10,519

History ranks 18th of 32 bachelor's programs at CU Denver by first-year earnings. The top three are Electrical Engineering ($78,878), Nursing ($75,503), and Computer and Information Science ($75,137).

Other history bachelor's programs near Denver

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
CU DenverDenver, CO · public		$38,627	$23,750
Metropolitan State University of DenverDenver, CO · public	9 mi	$42,785	$34,125
CU BoulderBoulder, CO · public	29 mi	$37,044	$17,905
University of Northern ColoradoGreeley, CO · public	47 mi	$35,403	$23,804
Colorado StateFort Collins, CO · public	59 mi	$36,272	$24,152
UCCSColorado Springs, CO · public	59 mi	$38,276	$21,250

Common questions

The median graduate earns $38,627 one year after graduating and $45,546 five years after. The median across history bachelor's programs in Colorado is $36,909.

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 Colorado 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 history 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

History bachelor's programs in Colorado, ranked8 programs by pay and debt History bachelor's programs in the US, ranked370 programs by pay and debt All CU Denver programs, ranked34 programs by pay and debt