New Earnings Dashboard Helps Students Evaluate Degree Value

Students can now compare median graduate earnings by state and field to prepare for upcoming federal loan eligibility tests.

Updated on Oct. 29, 2026 in Financial Aid

Gouache-painted editorial illustration of a black graduation cap and a single gold coin, symbolizing the financial value of higher education. — The HEA Group’s new dashboard allows students to compare graduate earnings across states, helping them anticipate federal student loan eligibility changes. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Is a college degree still the most reliable way to increase your household's long-term earnings?

The HEA Group launched an online dashboard that compares earnings for nearly three million college graduates against those of high school diploma holders. This tool offers students a preview of how their chosen fields may perform under upcoming federal student loan eligibility rules.

Why it matters

The federal government is set to implement a new earnings test that requires programs to prove graduates out-earn high school diploma holders to maintain access to federal student loans. This dashboard allows students to evaluate the financial return of their prospective degrees before these official federal results are released.

The dashboard tracks earnings four years post-graduation for three million individuals across 38,100 programs. While math and computer science bachelor's degrees show a median pay of $125,500, cosmetology credentials often fall below the median earnings of high school graduates.

The players

The HEA Group

A research organization that analyzes college data to provide transparency regarding graduate outcomes and student loan eligibility.

The details

The tool pulls data compiled for the federal earnings test to calculate premiums by state, field of study, and credential level. By comparing median earnings of undergraduate completers to median high school graduate salaries, the dashboard identifies which programs currently meet the requirement to show higher graduate earnings. This mechanism is designed to flag programs that may face future scrutiny under the Do No Harm earnings test.

The data reflects graduate earnings from the 2017-18 and 2018-19 academic years.
The HEA Group published the online data dashboard on October 28, 2026.
The federal Do No Harm earnings test is scheduled to be finalized in Summer 2026.
The first round of federal earnings test results is expected in 2027.

Education Landscape

This dashboard marks an expansion in the use of post-graduate earnings data to enforce federal financial aid standards. It follows a growing shift toward holding higher education institutions accountable for the debt-to-earnings outcomes of their specific credential programs.

Students should use these figures to evaluate the long-term earning potential of specific degree programs before committing to new student loans. If you are concerned about a program's eligibility, contact your school's financial aid office to ask how they are preparing for the federal earnings test.

The takeaway

Understanding how your degree program compares to high school graduate earnings is a vital step in assessing the value of your education. Use this period to research your specific field's earning trends before the first round of official federal earnings test results is published in 2027.