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After Michigan State: graduation, pay and debt

East Lansing, Michigan · Public · 40,922 undergrads

82% of Michigan State students finish within six years, the typical student earns $74,168 ten years after starting and graduates leave with $20,000 in federal loans at the median.

The short answers

$74.2k
median pay 10 years after starting college.
82%
finish within six years.
64%
finish in four years.
90%
of first-years come back for year two.
$20k
median federal debt at graduation.
67%
of borrowers were paying down their loans three years after leaving.
All the federal numbers

Finishing

Finished in four yearsIPEDS, fall 2023
64%
Finished within six yearsIPEDS, fall 2023
82%
First-years who came back for year twoCollege Scorecard, fall 2024
90%
Men who finished within six yearsIPEDS, students who started in 2017
80%
Women who finished within six yearsIPEDS, students who started in 2017
85%
Students in that six-year groupIPEDS, students who started in 2017
8,138
Earned a degree or certificate here within eight yearsIPEDS, full-time students who started in 2015
83%
Still enrolled here after eight yearsIPEDS, full-time students who started in 2015
11%
Students in that eight-year groupIPEDS, full-time students who started in 2015
8,107
Transferred to another collegeCollege Scorecard, earlier release
9.7%

Pay after college

Median pay 6 years after starting collegeCollege Scorecard
$61,149
Median pay 10 years after starting collegeCollege Scorecard, 2022-23
$74,168
Earning more than $25,000 six years after startingCollege Scorecard, earlier release
76%

Pay is for students who got federal aid and are working, counted from the year they started college, whether or not they finished.

Debt and paying it back

Median federal debt, students who graduatedCollege Scorecard, 2024-25
$20,000
Median federal debt, everyone who borrowed (finished or not)College Scorecard, earlier release
$19,500
Median federal debt, students with a Pell GrantCollege Scorecard, earlier release
$20,000
Median federal debt, students without a Pell GrantCollege Scorecard, earlier release
$19,500
Paying down their loans 3 years after leavingCollege Scorecard, 2024-25
67%
Paying down their loans 5 years after leavingCollege Scorecard, earlier release
76%
Paying down their loans 7 years after leavingCollege Scorecard, earlier release
82%

Federal student loans only. Private loans and Parent PLUS loans aren't counted.

Where these numbers come from

Updated Nov 5, 2026Spot a mistake?How we get our numbers