COSMETOLOGY SCHOOLS IN INDIANA — Federal Data, September 2026
Cosmetology Schools in Indiana, Ranked On What Graduates Owe And Earn
22 accredited institutions in Indiana report enough federal data on this program to be compared. They are ranked here on a single measure: how many months of gross pay it takes a graduate to cover the median debt.
See The RankingU.S. Department of Education data. No school paid to be listed.
Across the 22 ranked programs in Indiana, the median graduate needs 7.8 months of gross pay to cover a median federal debt of $11,847, against median earnings of $18,074 one year after completion.
That is slower than the national median of 6.8 months for this field, measured across the 987 institutions in our national cosmetology schools ranking. The best performer in the state is Aveda Fredric’s Institute-Indianapolis in Carmel, at 4.9 months.
Every figure on this page is recalculated on Indiana institutions only. Nothing is carried over from the national page.
At A Glance
What the federal data says about cosmetology schools in Indiana
The Ranking
22 cosmetology schools in Indiana, ranked by months of gross pay to cover the debt
Lower is better.
| # | School | Type | Award | Months | Debt | Earnings | Completion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aveda Fredric’s Institute-IndianapolisCarmel, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 4.9 | $9,833 | $24,147 | 88% |
| 2 | Paul Mitchell the School-IndianapolisIndianapolis, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 4.9 | $9,833 | $23,870 | 67% |
| 3 | J Michael Harrold Beauty AcademyTerre Haute, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 5.8 | $9,042 | $18,675 | 84% |
| 4 | Paul Mitchell the School-MerrillvilleMerrillville, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 6.0 | $9,833 | $19,685 | 86% |
| 5 | The Salon Professional Academy-EvansvilleEvansville, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 6.3 | $9,833 | $18,674 | 81% |
| 6 | Summit Salon AcademyAnderson, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 6.5 | $11,700 | $21,529 | 80% |
| 7 | Summit Salon Academy-KokomoKokomo, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 6.7 | $9,833 | $17,556 | 68% |
| 8 | Tricoci University of Beauty Culture LLC-BloomingtonBloomington, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 6.9 | $10,676 | $18,592 | 85% |
| 9 | Rudae’s School of Beauty Culture-Ft WayneFort Wayne, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 6.9 | $11,000 | $19,131 | 79% |
| 10 | Tricoci University of Beauty Culture-LafayetteLafayette, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 7.6 | $11,944 | $18,846 | 100% |
| 11 | Tricoci University of Beauty Culture-IndianapolisIndianapolis, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 7.6 | $11,944 | $18,846 | 55% |
| 12 | Denmark CollegeMerrillville, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 8.1 | $12,685 | $18,762 | 75% |
| 13 | PJ’s College of Cosmetology-ClarksvilleClarksville, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 8.3 | $9,833 | $14,181 | 69% |
| 14 | Tricoci University of Beauty Culture-HighlandHighland, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 8.7 | $11,750 | $16,118 | 75% |
| 15 | Ravenscroft Beauty CollegeFort Wayne, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 9.4 | $12,041 | $15,449 | 63% |
| 16 | Don Roberts School of Hair DesignSchererville, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 10.1 | $14,637 | $17,400 | 76% |
| 17 | PJ’s College of Cosmetology-RichmondRichmond, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 10.4 | $13,458 | $15,581 | 54% |
| 18 | Empire Beauty School-SpeedwaySpeedway, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 11.6 | $16,500 | $17,113 | 43% |
| 19 | Rogers Academy of Hair DesignEvansville, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 12.1 | $16,161 | $16,042 | 68% |
| 20 | Kenny’s Academy of BarberingIndianapolis, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 13.2 | $16,500 | $15,048 | 55% |
| 21 | Lil Lou’s Beauty and Barber CollegeGary, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 17.4 | $16,500 | $11,397 | 33% |
| 22 | Lil Lou’s Beauty and Barber College-HammondHammond, IN | for-profit | Certificate | 17.4 | $16,500 | $11,397 | 67% |
Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, Most Recent Cohorts by Field of Study and by Institution (published 9 June 2026). Debt is the median federal Stafford and Grad PLUS loan debt of completers in this program; earnings are median earnings one year after completion. Where a school offers the program at both certificate and associate level, the shorter payback is shown. Completion is the institution’s published rate, not the program’s.
The Top Five, In Detail
The five fastest payback programs in Indiana, one by one
Aveda Fredric’s Institute-Indianapolis
Carmel, IN
Aveda Fredric’s Institute-Indianapolis is a private for-profit institution in Carmel. Its cosmetology graduates leave with a median federal debt of $9,833 and report median earnings of $24,147 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 4.9 months of gross pay: the fastest payback in the state, and 2.9 months faster than the Indiana state median of 7.8. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 88% completion rate.
Paul Mitchell the School-Indianapolis
Indianapolis, IN
Paul Mitchell the School-Indianapolis is a private for-profit institution in Indianapolis. Its cosmetology graduates leave with a median federal debt of $9,833 and report median earnings of $23,870 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 4.9 months of gross pay: the second fastest in the state, and 2.9 months faster than the Indiana state median of 7.8. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 67% completion rate.
J Michael Harrold Beauty Academy
Terre Haute, IN
J Michael Harrold Beauty Academy is a private for-profit institution in Terre Haute. Its cosmetology graduates leave with a median federal debt of $9,042 and report median earnings of $18,675 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 5.8 months of gross pay: the third fastest in the state, and 2.0 months faster than the Indiana state median of 7.8. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 84% completion rate.
Paul Mitchell the School-Merrillville
Merrillville, IN
Paul Mitchell the School-Merrillville is a private for-profit institution in Merrillville. Its cosmetology graduates leave with a median federal debt of $9,833 and report median earnings of $19,685 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 6.0 months of gross pay: fourth in the state, and 1.8 months faster than the Indiana state median of 7.8. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 86% completion rate.
The Salon Professional Academy-Evansville
Evansville, IN
The Salon Professional Academy-Evansville is a private for-profit institution in Evansville. Its cosmetology graduates leave with a median federal debt of $9,833 and report median earnings of $18,674 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 6.3 months of gross pay: fifth in the state, and 1.5 months faster than the Indiana state median of 7.8. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 81% completion rate.
Read It Carefully
What this ranking does not measure
Absence from this page is not a verdict. The Department of Education suppresses figures for programs with small cohorts, so a small, excellent school will often have no publishable data at all. Schools that enroll no students on federal aid are outside this dataset entirely.
The measure is a ratio, not a repayment plan, and it counts federal loan debt only. Cash payments, private loans and employer sponsorship are invisible here. Local wages shape earnings as much as the school does, which is exactly why comparing inside one state, as this page does, is more informative than comparing across the country.
Other States
The same program, another state
Other Programs in Indiana
Comparing a different trade in Indiana
For INDIANA School Operators
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