Psychology at Westmont College

Westmont's psychology program produces earnings that exceed national and state medians, but with a crucial caveat: these figures come from fewer than 30 graduates, making them statistically unstable. That said, $34,826 beats the typical California psychology graduate by about $4,200 and ranks in the 76th percentile nationally—not bad for a program at a school with an 80% acceptance rate. The $25,500 in median debt sits right at the national average but runs higher than California's typical $21,500, creating a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.73 that's manageable but not exceptional.

What stands out is the gap between this program and California's top performers, where graduates from schools like UMass Global and Chicago School earn $38,000-$40,000 right out of college. For a psychology degree—notoriously tough in the early-career job market—those extra few thousand dollars matter. The small sample size also means one exceptional year or a handful of graduates landing particularly good jobs could be inflating these numbers.

If your child is set on Westmont for fit or values reasons, these outcomes won't derail their finances. But purely as a psychology investment, recognize you're paying more debt than the California average for earnings that, while above median, come with significant statistical uncertainty and trail the state's stronger programs by $5,000-6,000 annually.