Best Communication and Media Studies 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

628

Colleges with salary data

Average 20-Yr Net ROI

-$207,563

Across all programs

Average Annual Cost

$38,472

Cost of attendance

#	College	State	20-Yr Net ROI	Median Salary	Annual Cost	Avg Debt
1	Northeastern University Professional Programs	MA	+$313,112	$59,225	N/A	$23,250	Full ROI →
2	Northeastern University Oakland	CA	+$313,112	$59,225	N/A	$23,250	Full ROI →
3	Notre Dame de Namur University Grad rate: 39.2%	CA	+$230,960	$53,548	N/A	N/A	Full ROI →
4	University of California-Berkeley Grad rate: 93.5%	CA	+$197,235	$61,158	$42,708	$11,180	Full ROI →
5	Walden University	MN	+$154,245	$52,653	N/A	$43,566	Full ROI →
6	University of Virginia-Main Campus Grad rate: 95.3%	VA	+$144,411	$58,280	$38,132	$21,230	Full ROI →
7	University of Maryland-College Park Grad rate: 88.9%	MD	+$140,828	$56,006	$28,073	$20,000	Full ROI →
8	St. Thomas Aquinas College Grad rate: 58.0%	NY	+$137,920	$59,233	$51,685	N/A	Full ROI →
9	University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Grad rate: 93.2%	MI	+$130,272	$56,558	$33,345	$20,376	Full ROI →
10	San Jose State University Grad rate: 66.2%	CA	+$119,140	$53,096	$25,695	N/A	Full ROI →
11	Cornell University Grad rate: 95.2%	NY	+$109,531	$65,089	$83,196	$14,418	Full ROI →
12	California State University-East Bay Grad rate: 45.5%	CA	+$106,770	$53,131	$22,803	$18,250	Full ROI →
13	University of Arizona Grad rate: 66.9%	AZ	+$101,425	$54,113	$28,543	$19,750	Full ROI →
14	University of Phoenix-Hawaii Grad rate: 18.4%	HI	+$93,550	$49,715	N/A	$45,000	Full ROI →
15	University of California-Santa Barbara Grad rate: 85.5%	CA	+$92,821	$54,875	$36,776	$13,018	Full ROI →
16	University of New Hampshire College of Professional Studies Online Grad rate: 14.6%	NH	+$91,106	$52,225	$19,236	$27,000	Full ROI →
17	California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo Grad rate: 85.3%	CA	+$80,475	$53,015	$29,918	$14,928	Full ROI →
18	University of New Hampshire at Manchester Grad rate: 64.1%	NH	+$77,630	$52,225	$22,605	$27,000	Full ROI →
19	University of Connecticut-Waterbury Campus Grad rate: 59.7%	CT	+$65,080	$51,062	$20,917	$24,068	Full ROI →
20	University of Pennsylvania Grad rate: 96.5%	PA	+$63,898	$63,398	$85,738	$15,637	Full ROI →
21	University of Connecticut-Avery Point Grad rate: 57.8%	CT	+$62,336	$51,062	$21,603	$24,068	Full ROI →
22	University of Delaware Grad rate: 79.2%	DE	+$57,302	$52,422	$29,347	$25,000	Full ROI →
23	Arizona State University Digital Immersion Grad rate: 27.4%	AZ	+$53,585	$46,198	N/A	$22,500	Full ROI →
24	Rutgers University-New Brunswick Grad rate: 84.7%	NJ	+$52,822	$53,375	$35,232	$25,000	Full ROI →
25	San Francisco State University Grad rate: 52.2%	CA	+$50,578	$50,593	$25,258	$15,000	Full ROI →
26	University of Connecticut-Hartford Campus Grad rate: 63.9%	CT	+$48,624	$51,062	$25,031	$24,068	Full ROI →
27	Austin College Grad rate: 71.3%	TX	+$46,124	$56,237	$59,654	N/A	Full ROI →
28	University of Massachusetts-Amherst Grad rate: 83.1%	MA	+$45,805	$52,664	$33,389	$25,125	Full ROI →
29	University of Utah Grad rate: 64.2%	UT	+$44,521	$49,802	$21,799	$18,017	Full ROI →
30	University of Maryland Global Campus Grad rate: 23.6%	MD	+$44,519	$50,072	$19,790	$27,971	Full ROI →
31	University of Connecticut-Stamford Grad rate: 59.5%	CT	+$37,800	$51,062	$27,737	$24,068	Full ROI →
32	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Grad rate: 91.7%	NC	+$35,571	$49,861	$25,181	$15,500	Full ROI →
33	University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Grad rate: 84.8%	IL	+$35,499	$51,518	$32,134	$19,500	Full ROI →
34	University of New Hampshire-Main Campus Grad rate: 77.1%	NH	+$29,782	$52,225	$34,567	$27,000	Full ROI →
35	Miami University-Middletown Grad rate: 23.5%	OH	+$25,999	$48,063	$16,559	$21,500	Full ROI →
36	Miami University-Hamilton Grad rate: 20.5%	OH	+$25,467	$48,063	$16,692	$21,500	Full ROI →
37	University of Colorado Boulder Grad rate: 74.9%	CO	+$24,571	$51,103	$33,466	$17,500	Full ROI →
38	Santa Clara University Grad rate: 88.5%	CA	+$15,333	$59,569	$77,768	$18,500	Full ROI →
39	James Madison University Grad rate: 81.0%	VA	+$8,320	$49,910	$30,213	$21,502	Full ROI →
40	Northwestern University Grad rate: 96.2%	IL	+$6,772	$61,122	$87,804	$18,112	Full ROI →
41	University of California-Davis Grad rate: 85.7%	CA	+$4,062	$50,694	$38,067	$13,000	Full ROI →
42	University of Connecticut Grad rate: 83.5%	CT	+$2,460	$51,062	$36,572	$24,068	Full ROI →
43	University of Houston-Clear Lake Grad rate: 52.3%	TX	+$1,778	$48,185	$23,788	$19,829	Full ROI →
44	University of Washington-Bothell Campus Grad rate: 68.5%	WA	+$627	$48,033	$24,462	$16,433	Full ROI →
45	University of Washington-Tacoma Campus Grad rate: 58.5%	WA	+$363	$48,033	$24,528	$16,433	Full ROI →
46	Seton Hall University Grad rate: 71.6%	NJ	-$2,704	$54,864	$64,996	N/A	Full ROI →
47	CUNY Graduate School and University Center	NY	-$4,188	$42,744	N/A	$14,125	Full ROI →
48	Washington State University Grad rate: 62.0%	WA	-$4,424	$47,214	$27,176	N/A	Full ROI →
49	Michigan State University Grad rate: 81.9%	MI	-$6,624	$49,580	$30,528	$26,750	Full ROI →
50	Metropolitan State University Grad rate: 35.5%	MN	-$8,047	$49,167	$26,057	$34,933	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 Communication and Media Studies Degrees by State

Browse Communication and Media Studies programs ranked by 20-year ROI in every state that offers this degree.