Lesley University
Cambridge, Massachusetts · Private Nonprofit · 96.9% acceptance rate
ROI Score: 38/100 · Below Benchmark
Data: 2024-25 College Scorecard release
Lesley University earns an ROI score of 38 out of 100, landing in the Below Benchmark tier. Graduates earn just $33,400 six years out and $51,173 at ten years, with a $21,000 median debt and a 0.63 debt-to-earnings ratio. The 16.4-year payback period reflects modest earnings against the cost. The fundamental challenge is Lesley's program mix: education, psychology, expressive arts, and design dominate, all majors with structurally compressed early-career wages. The Cambridge location confers proximity to Boston-area employers but does not deliver Boston-area earnings outcomes. For an education student headed into Massachusetts teaching, the math works through PSLF and state retirement; for arts-track students taking on private-school debt, the result is genuinely poor.
How Lesley University scores under our methodology
These are the College Scorecard measures that pull this school's CampusROI score down. They describe the published figures, not the quality of the education, and they are our reading of the data. Check them against your own aid offer and intended major.
- ROI Score38/100 - Below Benchmark tier of our scale (below 45). For context, 38% of the schools we score reach 60 or higher.
- Payback period16.4 years - The median payback across the schools we score is about 12 years.
Lesley University
Quick Numbers
| In-state tuition + fees | $34,256/yr |
| Out-of-state tuition + fees | $34,256/yr |
| Average net price | $31,152/yr |
| Total 4-year cost (net) | $124,608 |
| Median earnings (10yr post-entry) | $51,173 |
| Average earnings (6yr post-entry) | $33,400 |
| Median debt at graduation | $21,000 |
| Estimated monthly loan payment | $223 |
| Estimated payback period | 16.4 years |
| 6-year graduation rate | 58.0% |
| Undergraduate enrollment | 1,122 |
Data as of 2024-2025. Source: College Scorecard API (U.S. Department of Education).
The Full Financial Picture
The first number you'll see is the sticker price: $34,256/year, which covers tuition and fees only. After grants, scholarships, and aid, the average student here pays a net price of $31,152/year, or roughly $124,608 over four years. That's the number to plan around.
What you actually pay depends a lot on what your family earns. Families making under $30,000/year pay an average of $24,799/year here, while families earning over $110,000 pay $35,152/year.
Among graduates who borrowed, the median federal loan debt from this school is $21,000, which works out to about $223 a month on the standard 10-year repayment plan. Our debt-to-earnings ratio divides that debt by average earnings six years after entry ($33,400) and comes to 0.63, under 1.0, meaning median debt is less than a full year of those earnings.
Net Price by Family Income
What families actually pay after grants and scholarships, by income bracket.
| Family Income | Avg Net Price/Year |
|---|---|
| $0 - $30,000 | $24,799 |
| $30,001 - $48,000 | $24,044 |
| $48,001 - $75,000 | $29,030 |
| $75,001 - $110,000 | $33,201 |
| $110,001+ | $35,152 |
Cost by Income Bracket Explained
Lower-income families (under $30K)
Families earning under $30,000 pay $24,799, and the $30,001-$48,000 band pays slightly less at $24,044. These are high net prices for low-income students given the institution's modest aid budget, and Pell Grant eligibility helps but does not close the gap. Over four years, low-income families face roughly $96,000 in total cost against $51,173 ten-year earnings, a difficult ratio.
Middle-income families ($30K-$110K)
The $48,001-$75,000 band pays $29,030, and the $75,001-$110,000 band rises to $33,201. Middle-income families are absorbing roughly $116,000-$133,000 over four years.
Higher-income families ($110K+)
Families above $110,000 pay $35,152, essentially full sticker plus fees. Over four years, high-income families absorb roughly $140,000 in net cost. Decision should be made on mission and program fit rather than financial return.
Earnings by Major
Top 10 most popular majors at Lesley University with available earnings data.
| Major | Median Earnings | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Design and Applied Arts | $45,099 | F |
| Psychology | $56,837 | C |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences | $45,293 | D |
| Teacher Education | $52,570 | C+ |
| Visual and Performing Arts | $49,175 | F |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions | $43,129 | D |
| Fine and Studio Arts | $41,320 | C |
| Film/Video and Photographic Arts | $45,508 | D |
| Business Administration, Management, and Operations | $67,879 | B |
| Clinical Psychology | $52,367 | C |
Earnings reflect median 4-year post-completion (or 1-year where 4-year unavailable). Grades based on debt-to-earnings ratio.
Program Analysis
Why these programs deliver their earnings outcomes.
Design and Applied Arts
Design and Applied Arts is Lesley's largest program at 63 graduates and one of the school's weakest financial pathways. First-year earnings of $25,227 climb to $45,099 at four years, with $26,500 median debt producing a 1.05 debt-to-earnings ratio and an F ROI grade. The ratio above 1.0 means median debt exceeds annual early-career earnings. Design grads should expect a long, financially difficult early career.
Psychology
Psychology graduates 50 students earning $39,211 first-year and $56,837 four-year. Median debt of $23,848 produces a 0.61 debt-to-earnings ratio and a C grade. Many Lesley psychology students continue to graduate school in clinical or counseling psychology, which is reflected in the four-year earnings jump. Plan for graduate school as part of the cost picture.
Liberal Arts and Sciences
Liberal Arts and Sciences graduates 47 students with $35,658 first-year and $45,293 four-year earnings. Median debt of $30,057 is the highest in the program portfolio, producing a 0.84 debt-to-earnings ratio and a D grade. This general-purpose track functions as a feeder for graduate study but produces weak terminal-degree outcomes.
Teacher Education
Teacher Education graduates 38 students with $36,897 first-year and $52,570 four-year earnings. Median debt of $17,918 (notably below the institution average) produces a 0.49 debt-to-earnings ratio and a C+ grade, Lesley's strongest result. PSLF eligibility for public school teachers materially improves the long-run picture beyond these numbers. The clearest financial pathway on campus.
Visual and Performing Arts
Visual and Performing Arts graduates 30 students with $20,600 first-year earnings, rising to $49,175 at four years. Median debt of $26,000 produces a 1.26 debt-to-earnings ratio and an F grade. The first-year compression is extreme, common for arts grads, and the four-year recovery is real but slow.
How Graduates Do
Earnings
Loan Repayment
| Metric | This School | Median of schools we score |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year repayment | 66.7% | 68.8% |
| 3-year repayment | 72.7% | 73.6% |
| 5-year repayment | 66.8% | 67.7% |
| 7-year repayment | 70.6% | 72.8% |
Completion Rate
Trends Over Time
How Lesley University’s cost and outcomes have moved across College Scorecard releases (2009-2024).
Average Net Price
Completion Rate
Median Earnings, 10 Years After Entry (as reported)
Earnings reflect borrowers measured 10 years after entry and publish on an irregular cadence with a multi-year reporting lag, so this series shows only the years the Department of Education reported - the data is never interpolated.
Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, release years shown. Net price and completion are reported annually.
Admissions Snapshot
| Acceptance rate | 96.9% |
| Enrollment | 1,122 |
| Pell Grant recipients | 30.6% |
| Avg faculty salary (monthly) | $8,813 |
Lesley University admits 96.9% of applicants, making it essentially open admission. SAT and ACT mid-ranges are not reported in current Scorecard data, consistent with the school's test-optional posture and its small humanities-and-arts-focused student body. The 58.0% completion rate reflects that the school accepts academically marginal students without consistently delivering the support needed to bring them to graduation.
Compared to Similar Schools
Peer institutions matched by type, size, and selectivity.
| School | ROI | Net Price | 10yr Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lesley University (this school) | 38 | $31,152 | $51,173 |
| Amherst College | 90 | $23,367 | $77,644 |
| American International College | 38 | $23,274 | $53,124 |
| Geneva College | 38 | $25,890 | $50,004 |
| Our Lady of the Lake University | 35 | $16,442 | $48,675 |
| University of Pikeville | 33 | $20,311 | $48,231 |
Who Thrives Here
Lesley enrolls 1,122 students with a 30.6% Pell rate, a mix of working-class and middle-class students drawn to its education, expressive arts therapies, and creative programs. The fit profile is a student who wants a small Cambridge-area private school for education or therapeutic arts training, accepts the financial trade-off because of mission alignment, and plans to leverage Massachusetts teaching pipelines or graduate-school feeders.
The Verdict: Below Benchmark Under Our Scoring
Under our methodology, Lesley University scores 38/100, which falls in the Below Benchmark tier (below 45). At a net price of $31,152 per year, with typical graduate earnings of $51,173 ten years after entry, we estimate the payback period at about 16.4 years. In our view that makes the financial case a hard one to make on the numbers alone, but those numbers are averages: your major, your aid package and what you want from a degree all change the picture, so run your own numbers before you commit.
What to keep an eye on: weak earnings relative to cost, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.63 (median across the schools we score: 0.61), a long payback period.
Median debt of $21,000 among graduates who borrowed, against average earnings of $33,400 six years after entry, gives a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.63. That is under 1.0 (a full year of those earnings); the median across the schools we score is about 0.61. Your major - and how much you borrow - really matters.
Lesley University: Common Questions
Is Lesley University worth it?
In our view, the financial case is a hard one to make on the numbers alone. Lesley University scores 38/100 on our ROI scale, in the Below Benchmark tier (below 45). At $31,152 a year after aid against $51,173 in typical earnings ten years out, we estimate the payback period at about 16.4 years. Your major and aid package can change the picture, so run your own numbers.
How much does Lesley University cost after financial aid?
The average net price - the cost of attendance (tuition, fees, books, supplies and average living costs) minus grants and scholarships, for full-time, first-time students receiving federal aid - is about $31,152 a year, or roughly $124,608 over four years. Because it counts living costs, it can run above tuition alone. That is the number to plan around. Actual cost varies by family income, per the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.
What do Lesley University graduates earn?
The typical graduate earns about $51,173 ten years after enrolling, roughly $9,373 a year more than the median high-school graduate ($41,800, per NCES, 2022). That earnings gap is what has to cover the cost of the degree.
How long does it take to pay off Lesley University?
We estimate the payback period - the time it takes for the earnings bump over a high-school graduate to cover what you spent - at about 16.4 years for Lesley University. The median across the schools we track is about 12 years.
How much debt do Lesley University graduates take on?
Among graduates who borrowed, median federal loan debt from this school is about $21,000, against average earnings of $33,400 six years after entry - a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.63. That is under 1.0 (a full year of those earnings); the median across the schools we score is about 0.61. How much you borrow really matters.
What is the graduation rate at Lesley University?
The six-year graduation rate is 58.0%. The national average for four-year schools is 64% (NCES, 2022). Completion is 15% of our ROI score, since a degree you don't finish rarely pays back.
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Data: College Scorecard API (U.S. Department of Education)
Vintage: 2024-2025 · Last updated: 2026-03-25
Earnings reflect median outcomes for all federal financial aid recipients. Individual results vary by major, effort, and career path.