Is California Institute of Integral Studies Worth It?

California Institute of Integral Studies leaves you in a weak financial spot. Ten years after enrolling, the median graduate earns under $49,000 a year , modest for a private school in San Francisco, one of the most expensive cities in the country. Your dollar earned here does not stretch far against Bay Area rent and cost of living.

The one bachelor-level program with reported outcomes, Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, is a warning sign. Graduates earn around $15,000 a year against the same $18,750 in debt everyone here carries. That is not a wage you can build a life on in San Francisco, and it barely clears part-time work. If this is the undergraduate path you are considering, the numbers do not support it.

The debt figure is the one bright spot. At $18,750, the median is low, so you are unlikely to drown in loans. But low debt only helps if your earnings can service it, and the program data here does not show earnings that justify the price of a private San Francisco education.

This school makes more sense if you are drawn to its graduate and professional fields , counseling, psychology, and integral studies , where you already have a career plan and are not depending on the degree alone to pay off. If you are an undergraduate looking for a clear salary return, look elsewhere.

On net price, families with lower incomes should press hard on the aid tiers before committing. Over half of students here receive Pell Grants, so meaningful discounts exist for lower-income families, and the sticker price is not what most pay. But with earnings this soft, even a discounted price is a gamble unless you have a specific, non-salary reason to attend.