California State University-Long Beach

California State University-Long Beach's program mix is anchored in Business, which accounts for 18% of degree output, followed by Arts at 10% and Engineering at 8%. The largest program by graduates is Business Administration with 1,566 completers, followed by Psychology, General (528 graduates) and Fine and Studio Arts (415 graduates).

Business Administration combines high enrollment with strong earnings, making it a central driver of the institution's overall financial outcomes. Across 61 programs serving roughly 9,247 students annually, 51 meet Azimuth's ranking threshold.

The College of Business also offers a Business Honors Track, per the program's curriculum page, providing a structured pathway for high-performing students. The strongest earnings come from Business Administration, where 1,566 graduates earn median earnings of $67,853 four years after enrollment — Azimuth ranks the program #86 nationally [per the program-ranking methodology](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/) among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Biology, General follows with 284 graduates earning $61,492, and Azimuth ranks it #112 nationally for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. The General Studies program graduates 279 students with median earnings of $60,019, and Azimuth ranks the program #32 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Several of these programs feed directly into Southern California's large healthcare, engineering, and business sectors, where employer demand remains strong. Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences, General (403 graduates, median earnings of $50,361) and Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General (370 graduates) represent high-enrollment fields where four-year earnings reflect direct workforce entry.

Programs in health and education, by contrast, include pathways where a share of graduates continue to graduate or professional study, meaning four-year earnings may undercount lifetime trajectory. The [supply-demand map](/analysis/supply-demand-map-college-degrees/) provides context for how these program families align with national labor-market trends.

California State University-Long Beach prices its education accessibly across the income spectrum, with net costs that shift meaningfully by family financial circumstances. Low-income families pay approximately $7,183 per year in net price, middle-income families see annual costs around $9,705, and higher-income families pay correspondingly more at roughly $19,750.

Azimuth ranks California State University-Long Beach #70 for post-graduation affordability among nonprofit four-year institutions. As a public institution in California, Cal State Long Beach benefits from the state's public-tuition structure, which keeps sticker prices below what comparable private institutions charge; the [net price illusion](/analysis/is-college-worth-it-part-1-the-net-price-illusion/) is less pronounced here than at higher-sticker schools, since the gap between published cost and what families actually pay is more transparent.

Need-based aid plays a meaningful role in shaping what students pay. Cal State Long Beach offers Financial Aid and Scholarships through its enrollment services office, per the [financial aid page](https://www.csulb.edu/enrollment-services/mycsulb-financial-aid-information/financial-aid-and-scholarships), covering federal Pell Grants, state Cal Grants, institutional awards, and work-study.

Students from lower-income households benefit most from this layered aid structure, which helps explain the more favorable net price for that income band. Families should apply using the FAFSA to access the full range of federal and state aid available.

Median federal student loan debt at graduation is $14,289, and families using Parent PLUS borrow a median of $15,177; private or institutional loans may add further borrowing that falls outside these federal-only figures — see the [Parent PLUS risk framework](/analysis/ou-what-happens-when-parents-borrow-too/) for how household context shapes PLUS decisions. For a graduate at the institution's median four-year earnings of $63,140, median federal debt of $14,289 projects to a monthly payment of about $161 under standard ten-year repayment.

For personalized projections across earnings scenarios — including Parent PLUS planning — use [Azimuth's Financial GPS tool](/analysis/financial-gps-framework/).

Graduates of California State University-Long Beach earn median earnings of $63,140 four years after enrollment, placing California State University-Long Beach in the 63.3 percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. That figure sits below the $65,228 median at comparable institutions (same control and size band).

Graduates earn about $4,408 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing the institution in the 74.4 percentile for [earnings beyond expectations](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/) among nonprofit four-year institutions. Those figures represent lifetime returns relative to CA's no-degree-equivalent earnings baseline of $34,672, the state median earnings of working adults without a bachelor's degree.

While institution-level earnings track CA's regional labor market, specific programs deliver materially stronger outcomes. Business Administration combines high enrollment with strong pay, making it a key driver of the university's aggregate return.

Azimuth ranks Business Administration #86 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions [per the program-ranking methodology](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/), with 1,566 graduates earning median earnings of $67,853 four years after enrollment — 1.0x the national benchmark for the field. Azimuth ranks Psychology, General #177 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions with 528 graduates earning $48,926, and Fine and Studio Arts ranks #39 nationally with 415 graduates earning median 4-year earnings of $43,349.

Business is the dominant program family, representing 18% of degree output, followed by Arts at 10% and Engineering at 8%. The College of Business also offers an Honors Track, per the curriculum page, providing an accelerated pathway for high-performing students in the university's largest program family.