Behavioral Sciences at Ashford University

The biggest concern here isn't the earnings—Ashford's Behavioral Sciences graduates start at $37,661, beating both the California median ($31,899) and national average ($35,410) by meaningful margins. The problem is what happens next: earnings actually decline to $35,778 by year four, while graduates carry debt nearly double the state and national medians. At $51,388, this debt load ranks in just the 5th percentile nationally, meaning 95% of similar programs saddle students with less debt.

That debt-to-earnings ratio of 1.36 means graduates owe nearly 1.4 times their first-year salary—manageable for high-earning fields, but troubling when paired with declining income. Among California's behavioral sciences programs, this ranks solidly middle-of-the-pack (60th percentile) for earnings but near the bottom for debt burden. For comparison, University of Phoenix-California graduates earn similar amounts with likely lower debt loads.

For parents, the question is simple: would you accept $51,000 in debt for a career path that starts at $37,000 and trends downward? The 31% Pell grant rate suggests many families here are already financially stretched. Unless your child has specific career goals that require this degree and clear plans to avoid the downward earnings trend, California offers multiple behavioral sciences programs that deliver comparable or better outcomes without the extreme debt burden.