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

430

Colleges with salary data

Average 20-Yr Net ROI

-$245,911

Across all programs

Average Annual Cost

$32,750

Cost of attendance

#	College	State	20-Yr Net ROI	Median Salary	Annual Cost	Avg Debt
1	Georgetown University Grad rate: 95.0%	DC	+$400,146	$80,634	$84,696	$25,000	Full ROI →
2	Roosevelt University Grad rate: 41.8%	IL	+$320,936	$67,732	$48,426	N/A	Full ROI →
3	Bentley University Grad rate: 88.1%	MA	+$280,492	$73,196	$77,082	$26,000	Full ROI →
4	Brigham Young University Grad rate: 80.4%	UT	+$197,084	$56,030	$20,879	N/A	Full ROI →
5	Excelsior University	NY	+$179,788	$51,791	N/A	$11,875	Full ROI →
6	Metropolitan State University Grad rate: 35.5%	MN	+$160,916	$57,427	$26,057	$32,145	Full ROI →
7	Saginaw Valley State University Grad rate: 51.8%	MI	+$150,800	$56,972	$24,043	$38,865	Full ROI →
8	DePaul University Grad rate: 69.7%	IL	+$132,119	$63,358	$59,467	$42,350	Full ROI →
9	University of North Dakota Grad rate: 63.2%	ND	+$90,483	$53,121	$24,580	$24,901	Full ROI →
10	Purdue University Global Grad rate: 30.4%	IN	+$85,324	$49,865	$17,994	N/A	Full ROI →
11	The University of Texas at Austin Grad rate: 87.7%	TX	+$68,991	$52,704	$29,842	$19,052	Full ROI →
12	Utah Valley University Grad rate: 40.0%	UT	+$68,323	$49,899	$15,172	$21,458	Full ROI →
13	Arizona State University Digital Immersion Grad rate: 27.4%	AZ	+$63,350	$47,260	N/A	$31,000	Full ROI →
14	California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo Grad rate: 85.3%	CA	+$38,843	$51,107	$29,918	$17,500	Full ROI →
15	Tennessee State University Grad rate: 32.7%	TN	+$34,829	$51,110	$23,828	$38,562	Full ROI →
16	CUNY Bernard M Baruch College Grad rate: 72.8%	NY	+$32,876	$46,348	$13,521	N/A	Full ROI →
17	University of Central Arkansas Grad rate: 51.7%	AR	+$29,740	$48,340	$24,265	N/A	Full ROI →
18	Sullivan University Grad rate: 28.8%	KY	+$29,600	$49,700	$31,100	N/A	Full ROI →
19	University of Delaware Grad rate: 79.2%	DE	+$28,892	$49,314	$29,347	N/A	Full ROI →
20	Purdue University-Main Campus Grad rate: 83.1%	IN	+$28,432	$47,935	$22,567	N/A	Full ROI →
21	Chapman University Grad rate: 81.9%	CA	+$20,132	$59,272	$81,327	N/A	Full ROI →
22	William Jewell College Grad rate: 62.0%	MO	+$17,394	$51,539	$34,291	$26,831	Full ROI →
23	California State University-Stanislaus Grad rate: 56.6%	CA	+$5,955	$46,936	$18,542	$13,775	Full ROI →
24	University of Dayton Grad rate: 81.4%	OH	-$7,760	$54,474	$64,310	N/A	Full ROI →
25	Oklahoma City University Grad rate: 66.9%	OK	-$13,767	$52,757	$46,144	$32,838	Full ROI →
26	College of Staten Island CUNY Grad rate: 33.7%	NY	-$23,549	$44,584	$14,084	$13,995	Full ROI →
27	Quincy University Grad rate: 46.7%	IL	-$30,008	$49,520	$45,102	N/A	Full ROI →
28	Providence College Grad rate: 86.7%	RI	-$31,708	$55,748	$76,667	N/A	Full ROI →
29	Texas State University Grad rate: 56.0%	TX	-$35,400	$47,295	$26,348	$26,599	Full ROI →
30	Weber State University Grad rate: 42.6%	UT	-$38,845	$44,734	$16,172	$21,361	Full ROI →
31	Sonoma State University Grad rate: 60.1%	CA	-$41,811	$45,971	$24,739	$16,500	Full ROI →
32	Texas A&M University-Central Texas	TX	-$43,788	$43,986	$13,220	$22,688	Full ROI →
33	Thomas Edison State University	NJ	-$44,384	$41,115	N/A	$19,766	Full ROI →
34	George Mason University Grad rate: 69.9%	VA	-$48,803	$46,608	$26,972	$24,500	Full ROI →
35	Arizona State University Campus Immersion Grad rate: 67.4%	AZ	-$48,838	$47,260	$28,047	$31,000	Full ROI →
36	University of Connecticut-Waterbury Campus Grad rate: 59.7%	CT	-$50,568	$45,140	$20,917	$22,000	Full ROI →
37	San Francisco State University Grad rate: 52.2%	CA	-$51,592	$45,516	$25,258	$15,467	Full ROI →
38	University of Connecticut-Avery Point Grad rate: 57.8%	CT	-$53,312	$45,140	$21,603	$22,000	Full ROI →
39	Southern Methodist University Grad rate: 82.8%	TX	-$57,788	$55,617	$82,532	N/A	Full ROI →
40	Wayne State University Grad rate: 58.3%	MI	-$61,473	$45,502	$26,794	$18,028	Full ROI →
41	Stockton University Grad rate: 73.7%	NJ	-$62,966	$47,106	$32,159	$27,000	Full ROI →
42	Southern New Hampshire University Grad rate: 43.2%	NH	-$65,179	$48,209	$37,524	$29,084	Full ROI →
43	Oakland University Grad rate: 57.3%	MI	-$65,504	$45,618	$25,016	$28,000	Full ROI →
44	University of Connecticut-Hartford Campus Grad rate: 63.9%	CT	-$67,024	$45,140	$25,031	$22,000	Full ROI →
45	South Dakota State University Grad rate: 59.5%	SD	-$68,580	$45,130	$22,761	$29,731	Full ROI →
46	Wichita State University Grad rate: 51.5%	KS	-$71,296	$42,648	$21,064	N/A	Full ROI →
47	University of the Incarnate Word Grad rate: 52.5%	TX	-$73,255	$48,925	$45,850	$21,004	Full ROI →
48	Saint Joseph's University - Philadelphia Grad rate: 81.0%	PA	-$75,658	$54,261	$65,513	$43,575	Full ROI →
49	University of Connecticut-Stamford Grad rate: 59.5%	CT	-$77,848	$45,140	$27,737	$22,000	Full ROI →
50	Charter Oak State College	CT	-$82,262	$44,086	$22,558	$25,000	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.