Best Journalism 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

173

Colleges with salary data

Average 20-Yr Net ROI

-$200,318

Across all programs

Average Annual Cost

$34,707

Cost of attendance

#	College	State	20-Yr Net ROI	Median Salary	Annual Cost	Avg Debt
1	San Jose State University Grad rate: 66.2%	CA	+$360,720	$65,175	$25,695	N/A	Full ROI →
2	University of Colorado Boulder Grad rate: 74.9%	CO	+$49,673	$52,240	$33,466	$15,750	Full ROI →
3	University of Connecticut-Waterbury Campus Grad rate: 59.7%	CT	+$49,204	$50,213	$20,917	$23,250	Full ROI →
4	University of Connecticut-Avery Point Grad rate: 57.8%	CT	+$46,460	$50,213	$21,603	$23,250	Full ROI →
5	University of Maryland-College Park Grad rate: 88.9%	MD	+$33,500	$50,859	$28,073	$23,250	Full ROI →
6	University of Connecticut-Hartford Campus Grad rate: 63.9%	CT	+$32,748	$50,213	$25,031	$23,250	Full ROI →
7	University of Connecticut-Stamford Grad rate: 59.5%	CT	+$21,924	$50,213	$27,737	$23,250	Full ROI →
8	Indiana University-Bloomington Grad rate: 81.2%	IN	+$12,611	$49,419	$27,361	$19,500	Full ROI →
9	Lincoln University Grad rate: 48.9%	PA	+$10,568	$48,000	$27,358	N/A	Full ROI →
10	University of Missouri-Columbia Grad rate: 75.7%	MO	-$6,082	$48,930	$28,948	$21,400	Full ROI →
11	University of Kansas Grad rate: 68.0%	KS	-$13,194	$47,923	$25,215	$22,811	Full ROI →
12	University of Connecticut Grad rate: 83.5%	CT	-$13,415	$50,213	$36,572	$23,250	Full ROI →
13	University of Washington-Seattle Campus Grad rate: 84.0%	WA	-$19,660	$47,995	$30,282	$13,654	Full ROI →
14	University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Grad rate: 84.6%	MN	-$20,627	$48,155	$29,013	$20,500	Full ROI →
15	University of Wisconsin-Madison Grad rate: 89.3%	WI	-$20,887	$48,079	$27,770	$23,250	Full ROI →
16	San Francisco State University Grad rate: 52.2%	CA	-$22,093	$47,086	$25,258	$16,875	Full ROI →
17	Ohio University-Eastern Campus Grad rate: 18.0%	OH	-$24,992	$44,437	$10,263	$24,208	Full ROI →
18	Ohio University-Lancaster Campus Grad rate: 13.1%	OH	-$25,008	$44,437	$10,267	$24,208	Full ROI →
19	Ohio University-Southern Campus Grad rate: 20.4%	OH	-$25,528	$44,437	$10,397	$24,208	Full ROI →
20	Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus Grad rate: 15.4%	OH	-$27,444	$44,437	$10,876	$24,208	Full ROI →
21	Ohio University-Zanesville Campus Grad rate: 18.2%	OH	-$27,780	$44,437	$10,960	$24,208	Full ROI →
22	Elon University Grad rate: 83.1%	NC	-$33,267	$53,552	$59,369	$19,875	Full ROI →
23	CUNY York College Grad rate: 31.7%	NY	-$46,864	$42,394	$13,686	N/A	Full ROI →
24	Stony Brook University Grad rate: 77.8%	NY	-$48,126	$47,251	$29,174	$27,000	Full ROI →
25	University of Hawaii at Manoa Grad rate: 62.5%	HI	-$69,748	$43,279	$23,832	N/A	Full ROI →
26	University of California-Irvine Grad rate: 86.3%	CA	-$70,319	$46,849	$36,121	$16,900	Full ROI →
27	University of Georgia Grad rate: 87.6%	GA	-$79,896	$44,918	$27,436	$21,120	Full ROI →
28	Georgia College & State University Grad rate: 62.0%	GA	-$80,154	$45,236	$27,781	$25,000	Full ROI →
29	Ohio State University-Main Campus Grad rate: 87.9%	OH	-$82,157	$45,332	$29,320	$23,346	Full ROI →
30	University of Massachusetts-Amherst Grad rate: 83.1%	MA	-$82,909	$46,250	$33,389	$25,447	Full ROI →
31	Arizona State University Campus Immersion Grad rate: 67.4%	AZ	-$84,942	$44,708	$28,047	$19,937	Full ROI →
32	George Washington University Grad rate: 85.0%	DC	-$86,838	$55,491	$80,727	$25,000	Full ROI →
33	Washington and Lee University Grad rate: 94.9%	VA	-$90,780	$54,059	$82,990	N/A	Full ROI →
34	Auburn University Grad rate: 80.0%	AL	-$93,843	$45,572	$34,402	$20,500	Full ROI →
35	University of Nebraska at Omaha Grad rate: 48.3%	NE	-$97,064	$41,236	$20,446	N/A	Full ROI →
36	California State University-Long Beach Grad rate: 71.3%	CA	-$97,490	$42,200	$20,310	$15,000	Full ROI →
37	University at Albany Grad rate: 64.7%	NY	-$97,750	$44,498	$28,490	$25,000	Full ROI →
38	Ohio University-Main Campus Grad rate: 65.7%	OH	-$98,056	$44,437	$28,529	$24,208	Full ROI →
39	University of Florida Grad rate: 90.7%	FL	-$98,178	$42,586	$21,719	$17,054	Full ROI →
40	University of Iowa Grad rate: 73.4%	IA	-$98,926	$44,179	$26,883	$25,907	Full ROI →
41	University of Wyoming Grad rate: 60.3%	WY	-$100,344	$41,457	$22,371	N/A	Full ROI →
42	California State University-Chico Grad rate: 63.9%	CA	-$107,172	$43,025	$25,590	$18,750	Full ROI →
43	The University of Texas at Austin Grad rate: 87.7%	TX	-$107,973	$44,021	$29,842	$21,500	Full ROI →
44	State University of New York at New Paltz Grad rate: 71.0%	NY	-$111,571	$43,212	$27,034	$20,500	Full ROI →
45	West Virginia University Grad rate: 61.7%	WV	-$113,029	$42,721	$23,678	$24,250	Full ROI →
46	Michigan State University Grad rate: 81.9%	MI	-$117,941	$43,895	$30,528	$24,985	Full ROI →
47	Long Island University Grad rate: 51.8%	NY	-$119,716	$46,498	$52,419	N/A	Full ROI →
48	University of Mississippi Grad rate: 68.1%	MS	-$120,191	$43,164	$27,692	$24,225	Full ROI →
49	University of New Mexico-Main Campus Grad rate: 52.1%	NM	-$120,960	$41,065	$20,973	$13,606	Full ROI →
50	The University of Texas at Arlington Grad rate: 55.1%	TX	-$122,820	$40,912	$25,265	N/A	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 Journalism Degrees by State

Browse Journalism programs ranked by 20-year ROI in every state that offers this degree.