Bachelor's · Davis, California

Is Mathematics at University of California-Davis worth it?

Medium confidence Medium confidence: 40–99 graduates behind the earnings figures.

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

Pays back in time: graduates typically recover the cost in about 3.3 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating
$52,807
Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating
$78,024
Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation
$10,743
NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families
$61k (likely $61k – $76k)
AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4
$38k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in CA
2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback
3.3 years (likely 2.7–4.2)
Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return
$113k (likely $17k – $206k)
Today's dollars
20-year net return
$574k (likely $367k – $797k)
Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide)
86%
Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26

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