How much debt do University of Northern Colorado music graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $24,354, which ranks 2nd lowest of 5 music bachelor's programs in Colorado. That works out to about $258 a month over 10 years.

Is a music degree from University of Northern Colorado worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 90% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 92%.

University of Northern Colorado Music (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: Do University of Northern Colorado music graduates stay in Colorado?

Most do. 77% (24 of 31) were working in Colorado one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Music
Public university
Greeley, CO
About 22 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

University of Northern Colorado music graduates earn about what music graduates earn nationally, $26,944 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $24,354 in federal loans, close to the national median of $26,000. Two other Colorado programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$26,94456th percentile of 229 programs nationally

Median federal debt$24,3542nd lowest of 5 Colorado programs

Debt-to-earnings90%Colorado median 92%, national 92%

How it compares

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

	University of Northern Colorado	Colorado	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$26,944	$26,944	$25,532
Median federal debt at graduation	$24,354	$25,596	$26,000
Debt as share of first-year pay	90%	92%	92%
Programs compared		5	229

Debt and first-year pay at every Colorado music program

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

University of Northern ColoradoOther Colorado programs

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 $258 a month, or 11.5% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (28 borrowers)	Share
Paying down the balance	20–39%

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

77% of graduates (24 of 31) were working in Colorado one year after graduating. Prices in the Greeley area are about the same as the national average.

Careers this field leads to

These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to music, 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

Sound Engineering Technicians

$60,630

Median pay in Colorado. 170 people work in this job in Colorado. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 3% from 2025 to 2035, with about 1,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: postsecondary nondegree award.

Bottom 10%: $40,970Top 10%: $84,970

Music Directors and Composers

$88,460

Median pay in Colorado. 160 people work in this job in Colorado. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 4,200 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $49,170Top 10%: $158,760

About University of Northern Colorado

In-state tuition and fees	$12,416 / year
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$27,266 / year
Average net price after aid	$17,760 / year
Admission rate	86%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	51%
Undergraduate students	5,598

Music ranks 30th of 32 bachelor's programs at University of Northern Colorado by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($74,308), Computer Engineering ($56,557), and Business Administration ($50,739).

Other music bachelor's programs near Greeley

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
University of Northern ColoradoGreeley, CO · public		$26,944	$24,354
Colorado StateFort Collins, CO · public	23 mi	$38,277	$26,837
CU DenverDenver, CO · public	47 mi	$29,483	$27,000
Metropolitan State University of DenverDenver, CO · public	49 mi	$19,797	$30,971
University of DenverDenver, CO · private nonprofit	53 mi	$23,262	$24,250

Common questions

The median graduate earns $26,944 one year after graduating. The median across music bachelor's programs in Colorado is $26,944.

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 music 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

Music bachelor's programs in Colorado, ranked5 programs by pay and debt Music bachelor's programs in the US, ranked229 programs by pay and debt All University of Northern Colorado programs, ranked32 programs by pay and debt