Highest Student Debt at 4-Year Colleges
Student debt can shape a graduate’s choices for years. This ranking shows the four-year colleges whose graduates carry the largest median federal loan balance, so families know where borrowing runs highest. Figures range from $41,733 at the top to $3,591 among qualifying schools.
We ranked 1,527 four-year colleges with at least 500 undergraduates and a published debt figure, and show the top 50. The median is $22,940, and the school in 50th place is at $28,875. Provo College ranks first, and Alabama has the most entries with 4. A typical monthly payment across qualifying schools is $243 on a standard ten-year plan.
High debt is a prompt to compare, not a verdict. Check earnings and payment share on each profile, since a degree with strong pay can support a larger balance. Compare against the lowest-debt colleges to see what alternatives exist.
Before enrolling anywhere on this list, run the numbers: estimate your monthly payment, compare it with the earnings of your intended field and ask the school how it helps students borrow less.
How this list is built
A college appears here only if it meets every condition below.
- Colleges considered
- All 4-year colleges (public, private nonprofit and for-profit)
- Ranked by graduate debt, highest first. Ties are broken by larger undergraduate enrollment, then by name.
- Main campuses only, with at least 60% of core data fields reported
- At least 500 undergraduate students enrolled (fall 2024)
- A reported graduate debt value (schools without one are not ranked)
- Data period
- Graduate debt: median federal loan debt of completers, pooled 2020 and 2021 cohorts.
- Monthly payment: median graduate debt on a standard 10-year repayment plan.
- Net price: average for students receiving aid, academic year 2023-24.
- Earnings: median earnings four years after completing, measured in 2022 and 2023 for the 2017-18 and 2018-19 cohorts, in 2024 dollars.
- Graduation rate: first-time, full-time students who started in fall 2018 (4-year) or fall 2021 (2-year), finishing within 150% of normal time.
- Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, June 2026 release.
Showing the top 50 of 1,527 qualifying schools. Select a column heading to re-sort the table.
| 1 | Provo College Provo, UT For-profit · 4-year · Open admission | $41,733 | $442 | $27,053 | $51,307 | 53% |
| 2 | Everglades University Boca Raton, FL Private nonprofit · 4-year | $38,996 | $413 | $27,371 | $59,470 | 59% |
| 3 | Grambling State University Grambling, LA Public · 4-year · HBCU | $36,500 | $387 | $19,809 | $47,043 | 34% |
| 4 | Allen University Columbia, SC Private nonprofit · 4-year · HBCU | $34,290 | $364 | $10,972 | $36,436 | 13% |
| 5 | Goodwin University East Hartford, CT Private nonprofit · 4-year · Open admission | $33,500 | $355 | $29,249 | $72,845 | 58% |
| 6 | West Coast University-Texas Richardson, TX For-profit · 4-year · Open admission | $32,946 | $349 | $53,020 | $110,100 | 47% |
| 7 | Benedict College Columbia, SC Private nonprofit · 4-year · HBCU | $32,500 | $345 | $18,250 | $41,293 | 23% |
| 8 | Shaw University Raleigh, NC Private nonprofit · 4-year · HBCU | $32,500 | $345 | $16,512 | $44,468 | 21% |
| 9 | Laurus College San Luis Obispo, CA For-profit · 4-year · Open admission | $32,416 | $344 | $22,733 | $39,388 | 41% |
| 10 | University of Phoenix-Arizona Phoenix, AZ For-profit · 4-year · Open admission | $31,553 | $335 | $13,520 | $61,486 | 20% |
| 11 | The University of Arizona Global Campus Chandler, AZ Public · 4-year · Open admission | $31,250 | $331 | — | $56,883 | 10% |
| 12 | Peirce College Philadelphia, PA Private nonprofit · 4-year · Open admission | $31,250 | $331 | $12,148 | $58,509 | 6% |
| 13 | Miles College Fairfield, AL Private nonprofit · 4-year · Open admission · HBCU | $31,217 | $331 | $14,271 | — | 20% |
| 14 | Livingstone College Salisbury, NC Private nonprofit · 4-year · HBCU | $31,125 | $330 | $13,479 | $37,280 | 26% |
| 15 | American InterContinental University System Chandler, AZ For-profit · 4-year · Open admission | $31,000 | $329 | $15,172 | $50,399 | 13% |
| 16 | Alabama A & M University Normal, AL Public · 4-year · HBCU | $31,000 | $329 | $17,621 | $54,018 | 26% |
| 17 | Academy of Art University San Francisco, CA For-profit · 4-year · Open admission | $31,000 | $329 | $40,613 | $50,255 | 38% |
| 18 | Alabama State University Montgomery, AL Public · 4-year · HBCU | $31,000 | $329 | $20,435 | $45,998 | 30% |
| 19 | South Carolina State University Orangeburg, SC Public · 4-year · HBCU | $31,000 | $329 | $18,097 | $46,691 | 33% |
| 20 | Bethune-Cookman University Daytona Beach, FL Private nonprofit · 4-year · HBCU | $31,000 | $329 | $12,030 | $46,007 | 29% |
| 21 | Fort Valley State University Fort Valley, GA Public · 4-year · HBCU | $31,000 | $329 | $10,338 | $44,844 | 43% |
| 22 | Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design Lakewood, CO For-profit · 4-year · Open admission | $31,000 | $329 | $32,363 | $41,363 | 34% |
| 23 | Art Center College of Design Pasadena, CA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $31,000 | $329 | $48,661 | $74,009 | 81% |
| 24 | Dillard University New Orleans, LA Private nonprofit · 4-year · HBCU | $31,000 | $329 | $22,094 | $48,421 | 44% |
| 25 | Southern University at New Orleans New Orleans, LA Public · 4-year · HBCU | $31,000 | $329 | $14,810 | $47,240 | 16% |
| 26 | Texas College Tyler, TX Private nonprofit · 4-year · Open admission · HBCU | $31,000 | $329 | $10,958 | $43,887 | 12% |
| 27 | Albertus Magnus College New Haven, CT Private nonprofit · 4-year · Hispanic-Serving | $30,964 | $328 | $34,028 | $63,088 | 49% |
| 28 | Huston-Tillotson University Austin, TX Private nonprofit · 4-year · HBCU | $30,750 | $326 | $19,719 | — | 35% |
| 29 | Central State University Wilberforce, OH Public · 4-year · HBCU | $30,739 | $326 | $13,096 | $42,843 | 24% |
| 30 | Chicago State University Chicago, IL Public · 4-year | $30,625 | $325 | $12,335 | $56,486 | 16% |
| 31 | Lane College Jackson, TN Private nonprofit · 4-year · Open admission · HBCU | $30,500 | $323 | $10,904 | $38,716 | 18% |
| 32 | Jackson State University Jackson, MS Public · 4-year · HBCU | $30,470 | $323 | $23,836 | $47,606 | 41% |
| 33 | Berkeley College-New York New York, NY For-profit · 4-year · Open admission | $30,426 | $323 | $34,124 | $52,781 | 42% |
| 34 | Post University Waterbury, CT For-profit · 4-year · Open admission | $30,157 | $320 | $21,634 | $60,571 | 29% |
| 35 | Florida Memorial University Miami Gardens, FL Private nonprofit · 4-year · HBCU | $30,063 | $319 | $23,238 | $46,572 | 31% |
| 36 | Tougaloo College Tougaloo, MS Private nonprofit · 4-year · HBCU | $30,046 | $319 | $17,043 | $42,641 | 33% |
| 37 | Johnson C Smith University Charlotte, NC Private nonprofit · 4-year · HBCU | $30,000 | $318 | $20,894 | $46,511 | 34% |
| 38 | Colorado Technical University-Colorado Springs Colorado Springs, CO For-profit · 4-year · Open admission | $29,832 | $316 | $16,745 | $60,707 | 18% |
| 39 | Ohio Christian University Circleville, OH Private nonprofit · 4-year | $29,579 | $314 | $20,607 | $49,508 | 35% |
| 40 | Baptist Health Sciences University Memphis, TN Private nonprofit · 4-year | $29,500 | $313 | $11,212 | $73,191 | 46% |
| 41 | Chowan University Murfreesboro, NC Private nonprofit · 4-year | $29,491 | $313 | $14,086 | $43,702 | 29% |
| 42 | Brescia University Owensboro, KY Private nonprofit · 4-year | $29,430 | $312 | $8,709 | $51,492 | 51% |
| 43 | Southern University and A & M College Baton Rouge, LA Public · 4-year · HBCU | $29,251 | $310 | $20,077 | $54,666 | 28% |
| 44 | Stillman College Tuscaloosa, AL Private nonprofit · 4-year · HBCU | $29,067 | $308 | $15,258 | $42,622 | 32% |
| 45 | National American University-Rapid City Rapid City, SD For-profit · 4-year · Open admission | $29,020 | $308 | $31,062 | $53,841 | 20% |
| 46 | Texas Southern University Houston, TX Public · 4-year · HBCU | $29,000 | $307 | $16,590 | $55,112 | 21% |
| 47 | Norfolk State University Norfolk, VA Public · 4-year · HBCU | $29,000 | $307 | $15,282 | $52,371 | 36% |
| 48 | Claflin University Orangeburg, SC Private nonprofit · 4-year · HBCU | $29,000 | $307 | $17,800 | $43,925 | 50% |
| 49 | Virginia Union University Richmond, VA Private nonprofit · 4-year · HBCU | $29,000 | $307 | $13,235 | $50,840 | 39% |
| 50 | Lincoln University (MO) Jefferson City, MO Public · 4-year · Open admission · HBCU | $28,875 | $306 | $19,092 | $50,859 | 22% |
States with schools on this list
Browse every college in these states.