UW-Oshkosh Psychology (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt

  • Bachelor's in Psychology, General
  • Public university
  • Oshkosh, WI
  • About 78 graduates a year

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

UW-Oshkosh psychology graduates earn more than graduates of most psychology programs nationally, $35,139 in their first year. The typical graduate leaves with $26,000 in federal loans, close to the national median of $25,624. Several Wisconsin programs report higher pay.

First-year earnings$35,13978th percentile of 875 programs nationally
Earnings after 5 years$47,58835% more than year one
Median federal debt$26,00013th lowest of 22 Wisconsin programs
Debt-to-earnings74%Wisconsin median 71%, national 78%

How it compares

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

Five years out, UW-Oshkosh graduates earn about the national figure and about the same as the Wisconsin median.

Debt and first-year pay at every Wisconsin psychology program

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

UW-OshkoshOther Wisconsin 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 35% between the first and fifth year.

UW-Oshkosh grads, year 1$35,139
UW-Oshkosh grads, year 5$47,588
All Wisconsin psychology grads, year 5$48,637

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 $3,770 less in their first year than other graduates. They also borrowed more. Students who expect to rely on grants should weigh this gap.

Pell Grant recipients, year 1 earnings$32,985Median debt $30,463
Other graduates, year 1 earnings$36,755Median debt $24,980

Paying back the loans

On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $276 a month, or 9.4% 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. Separately, 25 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $18,300.

Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth

82% of graduates (69 of 84) were working in Wisconsin one year after graduating. Prices in the Oshkosh area are about 7% below the national average, so a $35,139 salary here buys what about $37,813 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 psychology, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists

$113,360

Median pay in Wisconsin. 1,150 people work in this job in Wisconsin. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 12% from 2025 to 2035, with about 4,100 openings a year. Typical education to start: doctoral or professional degree.

Bottom 10%: $76,360Top 10%: $166,270

Social Science Research Assistants

$48,090

Median pay in Wisconsin. 110 people work in this job in Wisconsin. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 4,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.

Bottom 10%: $34,710Top 10%: $71,050

Industrial-Organizational Psychologists

$193,950

Median pay nationwide. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 300 openings a year. Typical education to start: master's degree.

About UW-Oshkosh

Psychology ranks 28th of 32 bachelor's programs at UW-Oshkosh by first-year earnings. The top three are Computer Engineering ($76,187), Nursing ($71,633), and Management Information Systems ($63,544).

Other psychology bachelor's programs near Oshkosh

Common questions

The median graduate earns $35,139 one year after graduating and $47,588 five years after. The median across psychology bachelor's programs in Wisconsin is $35,108.

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 Wisconsin 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 psychology 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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