Occidental College
Los Angeles, California · Private, nonprofit
Graduate earnings
have graduates earning more than a typical California high-school graduate (about $36,976 a year). 2 fall short.
13 of 31 undergraduate programs could be assessed. The other 18 have no earnings published. 3 verdicts use 1-year earnings, an earlier career stage. The 1 graduate programs are in the table.
Average net price, all families$38,263 a year By family income
What it would cost
Net price is the yearly cost after grants and scholarships, as reported for students who received federal aid.
Average for all families
$38,263 a year
About $153,052 over 4 years, if price and aid stay the same.
This multiplies the reported yearly net price by the years you choose. It is not a quote or a prediction: it leaves out interest, price rises and the chance of taking longer to finish.
Net price for every income band
| Family income | Net price per year |
|---|---|
| Under $30k | $20,705 |
| $30k to $48k | $17,655 |
| $48k to $75k | $21,468 |
| $75k to $110k | $28,033 |
| $110k and up | $54,959 |
| All families (average) | $38,263 |
College Scorecard, release 2026-06-10. Bands with no figure were not reported by the school.
Program earnings
Median earnings of each program’s graduates against a typical California high-school graduate ($36,976 a year).
13 of 32 programs could be assessed 41% have an earnings verdict
| Program | Degree | Median earnings | vs a high-school grad | Verdict | Median debt | Debt as years of gain | Recent completers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Economics | Bachelor's Degree | $103,164 | +$66,188 | clears the bar | $23,000 | 0.3 yrs | 73 |
| International Relations | Bachelor's Degree | $70,394 | +$33,418 | clears the bar | $19,275 | 0.6 yrs | 50 |
| Biology | Bachelor's Degree | $59,985 | +$23,009 | clears the bar | $26,272 | 1.1 yrs | 38 |
| Computer Science | Bachelor's Degree | $63,8451-year earnings | +$26,869 | clears the bar (1-yr) | $22,067 | 0.8 yrs | 31 |
| Cognitive Science | Bachelor's Degree | $78,782 | +$41,806 | clears the bar | not published | not assessed | 24 |
| Natural Resources and Conservation | Bachelor's Degree | $59,542 | +$22,566 | clears the bar | not published | not assessed | 23 |
| Film and Photography | Bachelor's Degree | $30,5261-year earnings | -$6,450 | falls short (1-yr) | $20,500 | no earnings gain | 21 |
| Political Science | Bachelor's Degree | $72,441 | +$35,465 | clears the bar | $25,700 | 0.7 yrs | 18 |
| Mathematics | Bachelor's Degree | $88,080 | +$51,104 | clears the bar | not published | not assessed | 17 |
| Sociology | Bachelor's Degree | $58,598 | +$21,622 | clears the bar | $21,250 | 1.0 yrs | 16 |
| English | Bachelor's Degree | $23,6051-year earnings | -$13,371 | falls short (1-yr) | not published | not assessed | 11 |
| Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics | Bachelor's Degree | $71,779 | +$34,803 | clears the bar | not published | not assessed | 7 |
| Psychology | Bachelor's Degree | $56,800 | +$19,824 | clears the bar | $19,764 | 1.0 yrs | not published |
| Research Psychology | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 54 |
| Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and Services | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 24 |
| Biochemistry and Molecular Biology | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | $25,978 | not assessed | 17 |
| Kinesiology and Physical Education | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 16 |
| Cultural Studies/Critical Theory and Analysis | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 15 |
| Music | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 15 |
| Chemistry | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 12 |
| Philosophy | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 10 |
| Physics | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 9 |
| Fine Arts | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 9 |
| History | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 9 |
| Area Studies | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 7 |
| Geology and Earth Science | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 5 |
| Religion/Religious Studies | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 4 |
| Theatre | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 3 |
| Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 2 |
| East Asian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 1 |
| Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies, General | Bachelor's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 1 |
| Biology | Master's Degree | not published | not assessed | earnings not published | not published | not assessed | 0 |
Sources and definitions
- U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, release 2026-06-10. Earnings are medians for graduates who received federal aid. Debt is federal loans only.
- The high-school line is ED’s state benchmark, $36,976 a year.
- Earnings not published: ED reports the program but no earnings figure, usually because too few graduates were measured. Nothing reported: ED lists the program with no figures at all. Neither is a judgement of the program.
- Debt as years of gain is median federal debt divided by how much more graduates earn per year than a typical high-school graduate. It is not a repayment time.
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