Best Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities Degrees in the US by ROI

Top colleges ranked by estimated 20-year net return on investment across all active states. Data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.

Programs Analyzed

903

Colleges with salary data

Average 20-Yr Net ROI

-$294,468

Across all programs

Average Annual Cost

$16,316

Cost of attendance

#	College	State	20-Yr Net ROI	Median Salary	Annual Cost	Avg Debt
1	City College of San Francisco Grad rate: 38.3%	CA	+$352,166	$61,309	$17,007	N/A	Full ROI →
2	City Colleges of Chicago-Wilbur Wright College Grad rate: 31.2%	IL	+$328,667	$59,815	$9,395	$6,550	Full ROI →
3	Oklahoma Wesleyan University Grad rate: 31.3%	OK	+$312,913	$63,512	$43,617	$22,291	Full ROI →
4	Columbia Southern University Grad rate: 35.0%	AL	+$227,879	$56,269	$18,002	$15,923	Full ROI →
5	Skyline College Grad rate: 40.8%	CA	+$215,558	$53,824	$10,461	N/A	Full ROI →
6	Canada College Grad rate: 39.8%	CA	+$191,912	$52,547	$9,514	N/A	Full ROI →
7	Mission College Grad rate: 42.6%	CA	+$178,566	$52,433	$15,047	N/A	Full ROI →
8	American Public University System Grad rate: 54.3%	WV	+$131,155	$50,607	$16,358	$6,125	Full ROI →
9	Thomas Edison State University	NJ	+$124,320	$49,296	N/A	$16,000	Full ROI →
10	Charter Oak State College	CT	+$110,641	$50,828	$22,558	$15,409	Full ROI →
11	University of Massachusetts Global	CA	+$97,211	$51,378	$33,365	$17,495	Full ROI →
12	Cameron University Grad rate: 23.2%	OK	+$79,016	$47,825	$18,742	N/A	Full ROI →
13	Marion Technical College Grad rate: 22.3%	OH	+$71,551	$47,622	$11,796	$12,812	Full ROI →
14	Ball State University Grad rate: 63.6%	IN	+$69,152	$47,971	$25,134	N/A	Full ROI →
15	Berkeley City College Grad rate: 41.6%	CA	+$61,180	$46,770	$17,110	N/A	Full ROI →
16	Albertus Magnus College Grad rate: 47.9%	CT	+$58,841	$52,351	$56,268	$26,402	Full ROI →
17	College of San Mateo Grad rate: 50.6%	CA	+$49,690	$45,672	$11,875	N/A	Full ROI →
18	William Penn University Grad rate: 29.5%	IA	+$43,142	$48,232	$40,749	N/A	Full ROI →
19	Irvine Valley College Grad rate: 56.3%	CA	+$37,092	$45,418	$11,750	$5,754	Full ROI →
20	University of Phoenix-Arizona Grad rate: 18.7%	AZ	+$36,522	$45,771	$19,449	N/A	Full ROI →
21	Palomar College Grad rate: 32.2%	CA	+$20,766	$44,438	$13,997	N/A	Full ROI →
22	Merritt College Grad rate: 20.9%	CA	+$8,842	$44,698	$22,559	N/A	Full ROI →
23	South Seattle College Grad rate: 29.9%	WA	+$5,806	$43,840	$15,497	N/A	Full ROI →
24	National University Grad rate: 44.0%	CA	-$722	$46,351	$37,116	$10,008	Full ROI →
25	City Colleges of Chicago-Harry S Truman College Grad rate: 26.4%	IL	-$7,129	$43,357	$10,722	$9,500	Full ROI →
26	Paradise Valley Community College Grad rate: 19.8%	AZ	-$7,135	$44,288	$19,032	$10,986	Full ROI →
27	Santiago Canyon College Grad rate: 46.3%	CA	-$11,639	$43,051	$12,617	$5,500	Full ROI →
28	Bemidji State University Grad rate: 51.6%	MN	-$12,972	$43,658	$23,066	N/A	Full ROI →
29	College of Marin Grad rate: 34.4%	CA	-$13,678	$43,695	$23,789	N/A	Full ROI →
30	Empire State University Grad rate: 27.3%	NY	-$20,522	$42,796	$18,221	N/A	Full ROI →
31	Chabot College Grad rate: 37.9%	CA	-$36,606	$41,465	$12,953	N/A	Full ROI →
32	Miles Community College Grad rate: 50.2%	MT	-$51,869	$41,753	$15,399	$11,949	Full ROI →
33	Austin Community College District Grad rate: 16.1%	TX	-$52,342	$41,511	$11,156	$15,000	Full ROI →
34	Georgia Southern University Grad rate: 52.4%	GA	-$52,886	$41,812	$24,563	N/A	Full ROI →
35	Western Nebraska Community College Grad rate: 34.5%	NE	-$58,120	$40,349	$12,550	N/A	Full ROI →
36	GateWay Community College Grad rate: 19.6%	AZ	-$59,272	$40,868	$18,316	N/A	Full ROI →
37	Northern Virginia Community College Grad rate: 36.3%	VA	-$59,632	$41,343	$15,821	$11,000	Full ROI →
38	Lake Superior State University Grad rate: 53.9%	MI	-$60,503	$42,690	$25,757	$16,881	Full ROI →
39	Northern Wyoming Community College District Grad rate: 38.0%	WY	-$61,472	$41,207	$15,914	$10,211	Full ROI →
40	Fisher College Grad rate: 27.4%	MA	-$64,946	$44,025	$52,723	N/A	Full ROI →
41	San Jose City College Grad rate: 33.0%	CA	-$71,936	$40,807	$24,038	N/A	Full ROI →
42	University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Grad rate: 70.5%	WI	-$76,750	$39,974	$18,115	N/A	Full ROI →
43	Saddleback College Grad rate: 44.4%	CA	-$76,987	$39,729	$11,792	$5,914	Full ROI →
44	Lake Michigan College Grad rate: 21.5%	MI	-$77,594	$40,776	$17,782	$13,000	Full ROI →
45	Coastline Community College Grad rate: 25.3%	CA	-$78,428	$39,877	$17,984	N/A	Full ROI →
46	Great Basin College Grad rate: 49.9%	NV	-$82,140	$39,904	$12,010	$12,000	Full ROI →
47	Highline College Grad rate: 39.3%	WA	-$84,459	$40,192	$19,642	$6,678	Full ROI →
48	Ohio State University Agricultural Technical Institute Grad rate: 45.5%	OH	-$86,344	$40,922	$22,942	$14,000	Full ROI →
49	University of Louisiana at Monroe Grad rate: 50.7%	LA	-$91,044	$39,803	$23,552	N/A	Full ROI →
50	University of Maryland Global Campus Grad rate: 23.6%	MD	-$97,337	$39,669	$19,790	$8,250	Full ROI →

How ROI is calculated

20-Year Net ROI = Gross Earnings (salary × 20) − Total Degree Cost − Debt Payoff (×1.35) − Baseline Opportunity Cost ($42,000 × 20). Data from the U.S. College Scorecard.

Find Best Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities Degrees by State

Browse Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities programs ranked by 20-year ROI in every state that offers this degree.