Bachelor's · Los Angeles, California

Is International Relations and National Security Studies at Occidental College worth it?

Low confidence Low confidence: fewer than 40 graduates behind the earnings figures.

The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans

Pays back slowly: graduates typically recover the cost in about 7.1 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $36,655; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $75,612; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $20,500; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $159k (likely $159k – $186k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $35k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in CA; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 7.1 years (likely 5.3–9.7); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: −$45k (likely −$161k – $85k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $381k (likely $135k – $682k); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 79%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26