+22%
Median federal debt at exit
Median federal debt at exit at Pepperdine University rose 22% between 2007 and 2010 ($15.1k → $18.5k).
California · Private nonprofit · Predominantly bachelor's
Pepperdine
Malibu, California. 3,629 undergraduate students. 80 programs in the federal Field-of-Study dataset.
ANOMALY ENGINE · NOTABLE SIGNALS
What the data flags at Pepperdine
Short-arc shifts (recent 3-year window), peer outliers, earnings trend breaks, completion drops, enrollment cliffs, and debt-to-earnings warnings — surfaced deterministically from the federal record. Multi-decade shifts are reported separately in the Long Arc section, since 25-year tuition drift isn't really an anomaly.
-100%
3-year cohort default rate
3-year cohort default rate at Pepperdine University fell 100% between 2021 and 2024 (0.6% → 0.0%).
+17%
Out-of-state tuition
Out-of-state tuition at Pepperdine University rose 17% between 2021 and 2024 ($59.7k → $69.9k).
SECTION 01 · OUTCOMES SNAPSHOT
The numbers, vs. California
Each tile compares this institution to the California median for the same metric. Sub-line shows the comparison value, not an interpretation. Sparklines trace the federally available history.
$82,939+28% · 6→10y
California median $42,588$64,934
Treasury earnings · 6y post-entry84.7%+16% · '97→'24
California median 61.3%$19,500+28% · '97→'10
At program completion3,629+7% · '96→'10
latest IPEDS86.0%+0% · '04→'10
first-time, full-time49.9%+128% · '01→'24
latest cohort$66,742+62% · '00→'10
out-of-state $66,742SECTION 02 · EARNINGS HORIZONS
How earnings spread, 4 to 10 years after entry
Treasury tax-record earnings for federally aided students who first enrolled at this institution. Each point is a horizon from the most-recent vintage. Single median per horizon (no p25/p75 publishing).
Earnings widen with time post-entry. Selection: federal-aid recipients only — not all graduates.Methodology →
SECTION 03 · DEBT-TO-EARNINGS
What loans cost relative to earnings
Annual debt service as a share of median earnings 10 years after entry, computed under federal Direct loan terms (10-year fixed at 6%). The 8% line is the gainful-employment threshold from federal regulation; above 12% has historically been considered “failing” under prior rule cycles.
Institution-wide
3.1%Median federal debt $19,500 amortized over 10 years vs. median earnings $82,939 (10y after entry).
SECTION 04 · LONG ARC
Ten-plus year arc
Federally available history. Coverage varies by metric — IPEDS publishes some series only after 2009 and others only before.
Undergraduate enrollment.
150%-time completion rate.
Median federal student debt at exit.
+21%
Pepperdine · completion · 100% rose
62.0% → 75.1%
+62%
Pepperdine · in-state tuition rose
$24,050 → $39,080
+191%
Pepperdine · out-of-state tuition rose
$24,050 → $69,918
+28%
Pepperdine · median debt rose
$14,500 → $18,500
-100%
Pepperdine · cohort default rate fell
2.4% → 0.0%
+32%
Pepperdine · pell share rose
12.5% → 16.4%
+28%
Pepperdine · earnings_median_8yr rose
$56,400 → $72,056
SECTION 05 · PROGRAMS
Ranked by 5-year earnings
Each row is one (CIP × credential) program reported by the institution in College Scorecard's Field-of-Study data. Cohort floor is 30 students; below this, federal data is suppressed.
Business Administration, Management and Operations.$142,013Law.$125,875Educational Administration and Supervision.$119,380Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology.$110,056Accounting and Related Services.$104,343Business Administration, Management and Operations.$91,408Public Policy Analysis.$90,495Economics.$83,724Political Science and Government.$81,421Health and Physical Education/Fitness.$78,198Education, General.$77,384Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication.$75,482Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods.$71,444Educational Administration and Supervision.$71,248Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology.$70,962Psychology, General.$68,070Communication and Media Studies.$66,858Psychology, General.$63,882Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities.$59,815Radio, Television, and Digital Communication.$59,382International/Global Studies.$58,137Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft.$41,597
SECTION 06 · BY CIP FAMILY
22 programs with earnings, grouped
Programs are grouped by 2-digit CIP family. Programs without reported earnings are hidden to keep the list focused.
EDUCATION · CIP 13
LEGAL PROFESSIONS · CIP 22
LIBERAL ARTS & GENERAL STUDIES · CIP 24
MULTI/INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES · CIP 30
PARKS, RECREATION & FITNESS · CIP 31
PSYCHOLOGY · CIP 42
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION & SOCIAL SERVICES · CIP 44
SOCIAL SCIENCES · CIP 45
VISUAL & PERFORMING ARTS · CIP 50
BUSINESS, MANAGEMENT & MARKETING · CIP 52
SECTION 07 · SIMILAR INSTITUTIONS
Same sector and degree mix in California
Picked by Carnegie sector × predominant credential level. These are not rankings — just nearest-neighbour surfaces for comparison.
CAUSAL DISCIPLINE
“Pepperdine graduates earn $X” — not “Pepperdine makes you earn $X”
Median earnings describe what cohorts earned. They do not describe what attending Pepperdine caused. Selection effects (who admits, who enrolls, who completes) are real. We publish federal data with strict descriptive phrasing — and link the methodology where you can read about the limitations directly.