Is a business administration degree from University of San Francisco worth it?

On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 48% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 55%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 10% or less. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several California programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.

University of San Francisco Business Administration (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

Q: How much debt do University of San Francisco business administration graduates have?

The median federal loan balance is $24,602, which ranks 37th lowest of 56 business administration bachelor's programs in California. That works out to about $261 a month over 10 years.

Q: Do University of San Francisco business administration graduates stay in California?

Most do. 90% (103 of 114) were working in California one year after graduating.

Bachelor's in Business Administration, Management and Operations
Private nonprofit university
San Francisco, CA
About 75 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

University of San Francisco business administration graduates earn about what business administration graduates earn nationally, $50,729 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $24,602 in federal loans, close to the national median of $26,000. Several California programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$50,72971st percentile of 1,105 programs nationally

Earnings after 5 years$104,526106% more than year one

Median federal debt$24,60237th lowest of 56 California programs

Debt-to-earnings48%California median 39%, national 55%

How it compares

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

	University of San Francisco	California	National
Earnings, 1 year after graduating	$50,729	$48,786	$45,396
Earnings, 5 years after graduating	$104,526	$72,547	$62,714
Median federal debt at graduation	$24,602	$20,708	$26,000
Debt as share of first-year pay	48%	39%	55%
Programs compared		57	1,105

Five years out, University of San Francisco graduates earn more than the national figure and about $31,979 more than the California median.

Debt and first-year pay at every California business administration program

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

University of San FranciscoOther 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 106% between the first and fifth year.

University of San Francisco grads, year 1$50,729

University of San Francisco grads, year 5$104,526

All California business administration grads, year 5$72,547

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 $4,236 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$49,938Median debt $25,000

Other graduates, year 1 earnings$54,174Median debt $23,099

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $261 a month, or 6.2% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.

Two years into repayment (106 borrowers)	Share
Paid off in full	10–19%
Paying down the balance	40–49%
Paused payments (forbearance)	10–19%
In default	10% or less

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. Separately, 20 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $56,138.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

90% of graduates (103 of 114) were working in California one year after graduating. Prices in the San Francisco area are about 16% above the national average, so a $50,729 salary here buys what about $43,878 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 business administration, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

General and Operations Managers

$124,390

Median pay in California. 300,840 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 285,000 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $60,370Top 10%: $293,810

First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers

$77,590

Median pay in California. 149,230 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to stay about the same in number from 2025 to 2035, with about 127,400 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $50,870Top 10%: $121,650

First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers

$54,870

Median pay in California. 109,180 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to shrink 4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 113,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: high school diploma or equivalent, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.

Bottom 10%: $38,860Top 10%: $77,590

Project Management Specialists

$120,910

Median pay in California. 114,380 people work in this job in California. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 76,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $69,180Top 10%: $188,560

About University of San Francisco

Tuition and fees	$60,492 / year
Average net price after aid	$41,431 / year
Admission rate	62%
Graduation rate (within 6 years)	70%
Undergraduate students	5,287

Business Administration ranks 7th of 22 bachelor's programs at University of San Francisco by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($101,731), Computer Science ($89,915), and Accounting ($72,588).

Other business administration bachelor's programs near San Francisco

School	Distance	Year 1 pay	Debt
University of San FranciscoSan Francisco, CA · private nonprofit		$50,729	$24,602
Golden Gate UniversitySan Francisco, CA · private nonprofit	3 mi	$77,752	$33,968
San Francisco StateSan Francisco, CA · public	4 mi	$48,184	$15,000
UC BerkeleyBerkeley, CA · public	12 mi	$90,008	$12,195
Dominican University of CaliforniaSan Rafael, CA · private nonprofit	15 mi	$65,611	$27,000
Cal State East BayHayward, CA · public	23 mi	$51,549	$17,140
Cal Poly Maritime AcademyVallejo, CA · public	23 mi	$57,265	$20,500
Menlo CollegeAtherton, CA · private nonprofit	26 mi	$50,306	$24,750
Sonoma StateRohnert Park, CA · public	41 mi	$55,001	$17,500

Common questions

The median graduate earns $50,729 one year after graduating and $104,526 five years after. The median across business administration bachelor's programs in California is $48,786.

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 business administration 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

Business Administration bachelor's programs in California, ranked57 programs by pay and debt Business Administration bachelor's programs in the US, ranked1,105 programs by pay and debt All University of San Francisco programs, ranked22 programs by pay and debt