debt
Education & Seminars

How Does Your Student-Loan Debt Stack Up?

Editorial Staff  |  DIGITAL EXCLUSIVE

Paid off your student loan yet? If average student-loan debt for graduates of AOM programs in this state is an indication of the nationwide reality, you're not even close.

An analysis of 500+ programs at 57 institutions in Oregon reveals that graduates of Oregon College of Oriental Medicine (OCOM, which offers a Master of Acupuncture, Master of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine and Doctor of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine) carry an average student-loan debt of $159,504. Graduates of National University of Natural Medicine (NUHM; originally a naturopathic college, but now also offering a Doctor of Science and Master of Science in Oriental Medicine) carry average debt of $231,702.

Here are the state's top 10 debt-generating programs based on the analysis of U.S. Dept. of Education data:

#1: Oregon Health & Science University (dentistry, first professional degree) – $276,675

#2: NUNM (alternative and complementary medicine and medical systems, first professional degree) – $231,702

#3: Oregon Health & Science University (medicine, first professional degree) – $221,089

#4: Pacific University (clinical counseling and applied psychology, doctoral degree) – $209,599

#5: Pacific University (pharmacy, pharmaceutical sciences and administration, doctoral degree) – $199,228

#6: Pacific University (optometry, doctoral degree) – $180,654

#7: University of Western States (chiropractic, first professional degree) – $169,703

#8: Oregon College of Oriental Medicine (alternative and complementary medicine and medical systems, master's degree) – $159,504

#9: Oregon State University (veterinary medicine, first professional degree) – $155,786

#10: Willamette University (law, first professional degree) – $154,190

February 2020
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