How much debt do University of Florida accounting graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $18,003, which ranks 3rd lowest of 17 accounting bachelor's programs in Florida. That works out to about $191 a month over 10 years.

Is a accounting degree from University of Florida worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 28% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 45%.

University of Florida Accounting (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Bachelor's in Accounting and Related Services
Public university
Gainesville, FL
About 139 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

University of Florida accounting graduates earn more than graduates of most accounting programs nationally, $65,144 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $18,003 in federal loans, less than at 89% of accounting programs in the country. It is one of the higher-paying accounting degrees in Florida.

First-year earnings$65,14486th percentile of 636 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$88,56336% more than year one

Median federal debt$18,0033rd lowest of 17 Florida programs

Debt-to-earnings28%Florida median 39%, national 45%

How it compares

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

	University of Florida	Florida	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$65,144	$51,301	$54,059
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$88,563	$68,963	$71,308
Median federal debt at graduation	$18,003	$19,786	$24,958
Debt as share of first-year pay	28%	39%	45%
Programs compared		17	636

Five years out, University of Florida graduates earn more than the national figure and about $19,600 more than the Florida median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Florida accounting program

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

University of FloridaOther Florida 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 36% between the first and fifth year.

University of Florida grads, year 1$65,144

University of Florida grads, year 5$88,563

All Florida accounting grads, year 5$68,963

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 $191 a month, or 3.5% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (44 borrowers)	Share
Paying down the balance	40–59%

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

Prices in the Gainesville area are about 3% below the national average, so a $65,144 salary here buys what about $67,344 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 accounting, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Accountants and Auditors

$79,250

Median pay in Florida. 91,000 people work in this job in Florida. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 115,300 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $50,280Top 10%: $131,930

Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks

$49,330

Median pay in Florida. 88,670 people work in this job in Florida. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 144,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: some college, no degree.

Bottom 10%: $36,680Top 10%: $72,260

Financial Managers

$153,280

Median pay in Florida. 48,910 people work in this job in Florida. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 10% from 2025 to 2035, with about 65,600 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $79,450Top 10%: $303,790

Financial and Investment Analysts

$94,490

Median pay in Florida. 23,900 people work in this job in Florida. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 24,700 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $60,620Top 10%: $155,470

About University of Florida

In-state tuition and fees	$6,381 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$28,659 / year
Average net price after aid	$6,541 / year
Admission rate	24%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	91%
Undergraduate students	35,629

Accounting ranks 14th of 70 bachelor's programs at University of Florida by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer and Information Science ($90,651), Computer Engineering ($87,949), and Chemical Engineering ($87,164).

Common questions

The median graduate earns $65,144 one year after graduating and $88,563 five years after. The median across accounting bachelor's programs in Florida is $51,301.

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 Florida 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 accounting 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

Accounting bachelor's programs in Florida, ranked17 programs by pay and debt Accounting bachelor's programs in the US, ranked636 programs by pay and debt All University of Florida programs, ranked70 programs by pay and debt