Master's · Los Angeles, California

Is Computer Science at University of Southern California worth it?

High confidence High confidence: 100+ graduates behind the earnings figures.

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

Pays back fast: graduates typically recover the cost in about 0.8 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $163,658; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $202,870; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $41,882; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Typical borrowing (no graduate net price is published): $44k (likely $44k – $44k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $134k a year vs bachelor's graduates 4 years out in CA; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 0.8 years (likely 0.7–1.0); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: $1.10M (likely $943k – $1.27M); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $2.66M (likely $2.26M – $3.12M); Today's dollars

Scorecard reports no net price for graduate programs; cost is based on what graduates typically borrowed.