Business Administration, Management and Operations at John Paul the Great Catholic University

A $25,000 debt load for a business degree is manageable territory—peer programs in California typically saddle graduates with similar amounts, and at a 0.50 debt-to-earnings ratio, this falls well within the range where monthly payments shouldn't dominate a budget. The estimated first-year earnings of about $49,500 align exactly with California's median for business bachelor's programs, suggesting graduates enter the workforce on par with the state average rather than trailing it.

The caveat here is real: John Paul the Great Catholic University's graduate cohort is too small for the Department of Education to report actual outcomes, so these figures are borrowed from comparable California programs. That means you're working with the typical picture for business degrees in the state, not verified outcomes specific to this school's alumni network, curriculum, or employer relationships. For a specialized institution like this—smaller, faith-oriented, with a 79% admission rate—the actual graduate experience could diverge meaningfully from state medians.

The practical question becomes whether you're comfortable making a $25,000 bet on estimates rather than track record. If your child is drawn to this school's particular community and mission, the projected numbers aren't alarming. But if the business degree itself is the main draw, larger California programs with documented outcomes in the $50,000-$70,000 range offer more certainty about what you're purchasing.