10-yr median earnings
$78,988
Federal aid recipients only
Public · San Jose, California
San Jose State University
San Jose State University is a public institution in San Jose, California. Graduates earn a median of $78,988 ten years after enrollment at an average net price of $13,760/yr.
- $78,988
- 10-yr median earnings
- $13,760
- Avg net price / yr
- 84.6%
- Acceptance rate
- 66.8%
- 4-yr completion
The verdict
San Jose State University pairs top-10% graduate earnings with open admission.
According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.
- Top 10%
- graduate earnings, US
- 84.6%
- acceptance rate
- 66.8%
- 4-yr completion
- +26%
- earnings, 6→10 yrs
City: Large
Carnegie: Master's (L)
San Jose State University is a public institution in San Jose, California enrolling 27,601 students, according to the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard's 2024-25 release. The acceptance rate is 84.6%. Graduates earn a median of $78,988 ten years after enrollment, based on U.S. Treasury tax records linked to federal financial aid data. The average net price after financial aid is $13,760. This profile includes admissions data, graduation rates, program-level earnings, and cost breakdowns to help students compare colleges using official federal data.
Data updated July 2026
What the IPEDS & College Scorecard Data Shows for San Jose State University
San Jose State University operates as a public institution located in San Jose, California (city: large), with a total reported enrollment of 27,601 students of which 30,873 are undergraduates. Institution-level records in the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) classify each school by Carnegie category, ownership sector, and urban/rural locale, which is how this profile's peer group and cost cohort are determined; San Jose State University is categorized as "Master's Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs" under the Carnegie classification system, a meaningful signal when comparing like-to-like institutions.
Admissions and cost figures below come from the same annual IPEDS Fall enrollment survey and net-price calculation that every Title IV institution is legally required to submit to the federal government, so the same standardized methodology applies whether comparing a public flagship or a small private college. Net price nets grant and scholarship aid out of the published sticker price, the number financial-aid experts consider the honest comparison point - the table further down breaks that figure out by family income band rather than a single blended average, since what one family actually pays can look very different from what another family pays at the identical school.
The outcomes further down come from federal tax records the U.S. Treasury links to former students who received federal financial aid, not a self-reported alumni survey - an approach that removes response bias but also means graduates who never took federal aid are absent from the earnings figures. Completion and retention rates only count first-time, full-time degree-seeking students, so a school with a large transfer or part-time population can serve those students well without that showing up in these particular metrics. Reading the cost, completion, and earnings figures together, rather than any single one in isolation, is the approach the College Scorecard's own methodology recommends for judging return on investment.
College Value Score
B+
College Value Score
77/100
San Jose State University
A 6-metric composite of earnings, cost, and completion outcomes benchmarked against every reporting US college, not a ranking of teaching quality, campus life, or fit for any individual student. See the full methodology.
Earnings A+
$78,988
10-year median graduate earnings
Net Price C+
$13,760
Average annual cost after grants and aid
Graduation Rate N/A
N/A
6-year completion rate
Debt D
$15,000
Median federal debt at graduation
Loan Repayment A+
83.5%
Borrowers repaying loans within 3 years
Retention B+
86.8%
First-year students returning for year two
Each axis is the percentile score shown in the breakdown at left; the shape shows this school's overall profile at a glance.
Avg net price
$13,760
After grants and scholarships
4-yr completion
66.8%
First-time, full-time bachelor's
4-year completion vs national average (40%) 66.8%
Higher is better
College ROI Quadrant - San Jose State University vs peers
Each dot is a college plotted by 10-year median earnings (x-axis) vs average net price (y-axis), colored by 4-year graduation rate. Top-left = best ROI; bottom-right = avoid.
How San Jose State University ranks nationally
Where this school's graduate earnings fall within the full national distribution of every US college that reports to the College Scorecard, not just its peer set.
San Jose State University: graduate earnings vs. every US college
10-year median earnings, College Scorecard
$78,988 Top 10% higher than 90% of 5,103 US colleges
Each bar is a $20K-wide band; taller bars hold more US colleges. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard · 2024
Quick Facts
27,601
Total enrollment
84.6%
Acceptance rate
-
SAT average
66.8%
4-yr graduation rate
$78,988
10-yr median earnings
86.8%
First-year retention
Admissions
| Admission Rate | 84.6% |
Share of applicants admitted
Costs & Financial Aid
Tuition & Net Price
| In-State Tuition | $8,410 |
| Out-of-State Tuition | $21,010 |
| Average Net Price | $13,760 |
Net Price by Family Income
| $0 – $30,000 | $9,730 |
| $30,001 – $48,000 | $10,114 |
| $48,001 – $75,000 | $12,099 |
| Over $110,000 | $22,862 |
35.2%
Pell Grant Rate
19.5%
Federal Loan Rate
$15,000
Median Debt
$159/mo
Monthly Payment
Student Demographics
Race & ethnicity
Student body at a glance
52.2%
Female
49.0%
First Generation
Outcomes
66.8%
4-Year Completion Rate
86.8%
Retention Rate
$62,448
Median Earnings (6yr)
$78,988
Median Earnings (10yr)
72.5%
Earning Over $25K
83.5%
Loan Repayment, Completers (3yr)
Programs & Earnings
Top programs at San Jose State University by graduate earnings
Median earnings of program completers, College Scorecard field-of-study file
- Computer Engineering
Computer Engineering
$125,015 median earnings
- Registered Nursing, Nursin…
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
$92,277 median earnings
- Business Administration, M…
Business Administration, Management and Operations
$87,973 median earnings
- Educational Administration…
Educational Administration and Supervision
$86,550 median earnings
- Biomedical/Medical Enginee…
Biomedical/Medical Engineering
$84,653 median earnings
- Computer Engineering
Computer Engineering
$78,074 median earnings
- Civil Engineering
Civil Engineering
$77,401 median earnings
- Computer Science
Computer Science
$74,953 median earnings
What this shows The highest-earning programs at a school are not necessarily its most popular ones - a small specialized program can post strong median earnings without reflecting the outcome most students here actually see.
| Program | Credential | Completers | Median Earnings | Median Debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Computer Engineering | Master's | 333 | $125,015 | - |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | Bachelor's | 167 | $92,277 | - |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | Master's | 137 | $87,973 | - |
| Educational Administration and Supervision | Master's | 7 | $86,550 | - |
| Biomedical/Medical Engineering | Master's | 31 | $84,653 | - |
| Computer Engineering | Bachelor's | 248 | $78,074 | - |
| Civil Engineering | Master's | 47 | $77,401 | - |
| Computer Science | Bachelor's | 288 | $74,953 | - |
| Civil Engineering | Bachelor's | 101 | $74,845 | - |
| Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering | Bachelor's | 99 | $73,720 | - |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and Services | Master's | 29 | $73,635 | - |
| Social Work | Master's | 168 | $72,320 | - |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions | Master's | 86 | $71,015 | - |
| Accounting and Related Services | Master's | 28 | $68,778 | - |
| Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering | Bachelor's | 74 | $68,219 | - |
Guides & Resources
Is College Worth It?
Analyze the financial return of a degree
Debt vs. Earnings by Major
Which fields of study pay off fastest
Colleges With the Best ROI
Schools where graduates earn the most vs. cost
How to Compare Colleges
A data-driven framework for picking schools
Understanding Earnings Data
How College Scorecard measures outcomes
Community College vs. 4-Year
Compare costs, outcomes, and career paths
Related Colleges
Other public institutions in California
California State University-Fullerton
Fullerton, CA
38,546 students Earn $62,951 90.5% admit
California State University-Long Beach
Long Beach, CA
35,924 students Earn $64,403 46.3% admit
San Diego State University
San Diego, CA
35,377 students Earn $64,909 36.2% admit
University of California-San Diego
La Jolla, CA
34,948 students Earn $84,943 26.7% admit
University of California-Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA
33,475 students Earn $82,511 9.0% admit
University of California-Berkeley
Berkeley, CA
33,068 students Earn $92,446 11.0% admit
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the acceptance rate at San Jose State University? ▼
San Jose State University is a public institution in San Jose, California. The acceptance rate is 84.6%. Total enrollment is 27,601 students.
How much do San Jose State University graduates earn? ▼
Graduates of San Jose State University earn a median of $78,988 ten years after enrollment. Six years after enrollment, median earnings are $62,448.
How much does San Jose State University cost? ▼
The average net price at San Jose State University is $13,760. In-state tuition is $8,410 and out-of-state tuition is $21,010. Median student debt at graduation is $15,000.
What is the graduation rate at San Jose State University? ▼
San Jose State University has a 4-year completion rate of 66.8%. The first-year retention rate is 86.8%.
Is San Jose State University worth the student debt? ▼
The median student debt at San Jose State University is $15,000, while graduates earn a median of $78,988 ten years after enrollment. That debt represents about 19% of first-year post-graduation earnings. Among borrowers who completed their program, 83.5% are repaying their loans within 3 years. Estimated monthly loan payment is $159.
Sources & methodology
According to the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard's 2024-25 release, PlainCollege tracks 6,243 postsecondary institutions and 70,827 individual school-and-program earnings records nationwide.
Every figure on this page is read live from official U.S. federal datasets, as of the 2024-25 release. Read the full methodology for how the data is sourced, computed, and verified.
- College Scorecard, U.S. Department of Education - graduate earnings, cost & completion (collegescorecard.ed.gov).
- IPEDS, National Center for Education Statistics - enrollment, admissions, Carnegie class & demographics (nces.ed.gov/ipeds).
- U.S. Treasury / IRS earnings linkage - median earnings 6 & 10 years after enrollment for federal-aid recipients (irs.gov).
- College Scorecard, Field of Study - program-level (credential) earnings & debt (collegescorecard.ed.gov).
- Federal Student Aid (Title IV / NSLDS) - U.S. Department of Education - net price, student debt & aid-recipient repayment outcomes (studentaid.gov).
What this means for San Jose State University
- San Jose State University's graduates land in the 10th percentile nationally for 10-year earnings among reporting colleges.
- The average net price after aid is $13,760 - compare it against schools with similar outcomes but a lower cost.Find similar schools that cost less
- See how this school compares to every other college in California.Browse California
This profile is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or admissions advice. Figures are historical averages and may not predict an individual student's outcome - confirm current details directly with the institution before making enrollment decisions.
Every figure on PlainCollege is rendered directly from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard data, no number is typed in by an editor. Institution profiles are compiled directly from College Scorecard, IPEDS, and Treasury earnings-linkage data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2024-25.