+12%
In-state tuition
In-state tuition at The Catholic University of America rose 12% between 2021 and 2024 ($52.2k → $58.4k).
District of Columbia · Private nonprofit · Predominantly bachelor's
Catholic University
Washington, District of Columbia. 3,063 undergraduate students. 172 programs in the federal Field-of-Study dataset.
ANOMALY ENGINE · NOTABLE SIGNALS
What the data flags at Catholic University
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 The Catholic University of America fell 100% between 2021 and 2024 (1.2% → 0.0%).
+12%
Out-of-state tuition
Out-of-state tuition at The Catholic University of America rose 12% between 2021 and 2024 ($52.2k → $58.4k).
SECTION 01 · OUTCOMES SNAPSHOT
The numbers, vs. District of Columbia
Each tile compares this institution to the District of Columbia median for the same metric. Sub-line shows the comparison value, not an interpretation. Sparklines trace the federally available history.
$73,250+16% · 6→10y
District of Columbia median $49,020$63,217
Treasury earnings · 6y post-entry81.3%+13% · '97→'24
District of Columbia median 55.8%$22,250+81% · '97→'20
At program completion3,063+38% · '96→'24
latest IPEDS83.5%+2% · '04→'24
first-time, full-time83.8%-2% · '01→'24
latest cohort$55,834+193% · '00→'24
out-of-state $55,834SECTION 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
4.0%Median federal debt $22,250 amortized over 10 years vs. median earnings $73,250 (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.
+25%
Catholic University · completion · 100% rose
58.1% → 72.5%
+38%
Catholic University · undergrad enrollment rose
2,288 → 3,154
+193%
Catholic University · in-state tuition rose
$19,930 → $58,378
+193%
Catholic University · out-of-state tuition rose
$19,930 → $58,378
+81%
Catholic University · median debt rose
$14,375 → $26,000
-85%
Catholic University · cohort default rate fell
1.7% → 0.0%
+136%
Catholic University · pell share rose
8.6% → 20.3%
+25%
Catholic University · earnings_median_10yr rose
$58,800 → $73,250
+31%
Catholic University · earnings_median_8yr rose
$53,400 → $70,095
+37%
Catholic University · earnings_median_6yr rose
$46,000 → $63,217
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.$119,164Law.$118,594Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing.$117,294Human Resources Management and Services.$111,261Civil Engineering.$103,238Finance and Financial Management Services.$100,395Biomedical/Medical Engineering.$98,693Accounting and Related Services.$97,224Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing.$94,074Mechanical Engineering.$92,376Architecture and Related Services, Other.$89,689Theology and Religious Vocations, Other.$84,447Business Administration, Management and Operations.$79,779Marketing.$78,716Library Science and Administration.$77,400Social Work.$75,682Architecture.$73,140Political Science and Government.$70,657Communication and Media Studies.$70,420Social Work.$69,749Architecture.$68,607Sociology.$66,324Theological and Ministerial Studies.$65,661Philosophy.$62,337
Showing top 24 of 30 ranked programs.
SECTION 06 · BY CIP FAMILY
30 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
ENGINEERING · CIP 14
FOREIGN LANGUAGES · CIP 16
LEGAL PROFESSIONS · CIP 22
ENGLISH LANGUAGE & LITERATURE · CIP 23
LIBRARY SCIENCE · CIP 25
PHILOSOPHY & RELIGIOUS STUDIES · CIP 38
THEOLOGY & RELIGIOUS VOCATIONS · CIP 39
PSYCHOLOGY · CIP 42
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION & SOCIAL SERVICES · CIP 44
SOCIAL SCIENCES · CIP 45
VISUAL & PERFORMING ARTS · CIP 50
HEALTH PROFESSIONS · CIP 51
BUSINESS, MANAGEMENT & MARKETING · CIP 52
HISTORY · CIP 54
ARCHITECTURE · CIP 04
COMMUNICATION & JOURNALISM · CIP 09
FINANCIAL OUTCOME · ILLUSTRATION
Estimate the financial outcome at Catholic University
Pick a program. Cost from Scorecard net price by family income; earnings from Treasury 5-year-post-completion median, projected forward with a Mincer age-earnings curve. The selection-bias toggle applies the Dale-Krueger shrinkage. Outcomes illustration, not a forecast — see methodology.
Shrinks the earnings premium toward the matched-applicant mean. STEM <15%, business ~40%, arts & education ~60%.
NET PRESENT VALUE
$948,890
Over 40 years, discounted 5.0%
BREAKEVEN
Year 12
First year cumulative discounted earnings cross zero
- Cost per year
- $25,667
- HS-only baseline · DC
- $47,200
- Years to complete
- 7
- CIP family
- 22
Outcomes illustration · not a forecast. Projects observed Scorecard earnings forward with a Mincer age-earnings curve under your assumptions. See methodology for the math.
SECTION 07 · SIMILAR INSTITUTIONS
Same sector and degree mix in District of Columbia
Picked by Carnegie sector × predominant credential level. These are not rankings — just nearest-neighbour surfaces for comparison.
CAUSAL DISCIPLINE
“Catholic University graduates earn $X” — not “Catholic University makes you earn $X”
Median earnings describe what cohorts earned. They do not describe what attending Catholic University 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.