Best Political Science and Government 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

507

Colleges with salary data

Average 20-Yr Net ROI

-$137,577

Across all programs

Average Annual Cost

$42,354

Cost of attendance

#	College	State	20-Yr Net ROI	Median Salary	Annual Cost	Avg Debt
1	Williams College Grad rate: 95.8%	MA	+$416,411	$79,779	$81,164	$10,750	Full ROI →
2	Lehigh University Grad rate: 90.2%	PA	+$339,747	$75,918	$77,515	$21,150	Full ROI →
3	Stanford University Grad rate: 94.0%	CA	+$324,432	$75,464	$82,162	$12,000	Full ROI →
4	Dartmouth College Grad rate: 95.4%	NH	+$310,427	$75,463	$83,802	$17,500	Full ROI →
5	Bradley University Grad rate: 74.0%	IL	+$289,390	$68,838	$52,730	$27,000	Full ROI →
6	Stony Brook University Grad rate: 77.8%	NY	+$282,425	$63,266	$29,174	$19,406	Full ROI →
7	University of Rochester Grad rate: 87.0%	NY	+$240,390	$71,957	$82,600	$21,000	Full ROI →
8	Frostburg State University Grad rate: 50.7%	MD	+$236,210	$60,798	$26,500	$25,000	Full ROI →
9	Centre College Grad rate: 86.0%	KY	+$218,544	$65,598	$63,354	N/A	Full ROI →
10	Saint Mary's College of California Grad rate: 70.4%	CA	+$205,564	$68,762	$73,655	$25,967	Full ROI →
11	College of Staten Island CUNY Grad rate: 33.7%	NY	+$191,889	$55,262	$14,084	$12,603	Full ROI →
12	Muhlenberg College Grad rate: 81.6%	PA	+$187,949	$67,973	$73,782	$26,950	Full ROI →
13	Northeastern University Oakland	CA	+$184,478	$52,748	N/A	$22,579	Full ROI →
14	Northeastern University Professional Programs	MA	+$184,478	$52,748	N/A	$22,579	Full ROI →
15	SUNY Oneonta Grad rate: 72.3%	NY	+$184,161	$58,170	$27,258	$22,375	Full ROI →
16	South Dakota State University Grad rate: 59.5%	SD	+$183,246	$57,402	$22,761	$25,000	Full ROI →
17	Bryant University Grad rate: 81.5%	RI	+$183,228	$66,316	$67,926	$23,250	Full ROI →
18	Duke University Grad rate: 96.2%	NC	+$179,702	$68,481	$82,749	$14,016	Full ROI →
19	University of Missouri-Kansas City Grad rate: 56.0%	MO	+$165,132	$56,070	$24,645	$13,102	Full ROI →
20	Princeton University Grad rate: 97.3%	NJ	+$160,920	$66,134	$80,440	N/A	Full ROI →
21	Kansas State University Grad rate: 69.5%	KS	+$157,426	$56,647	$25,441	$25,000	Full ROI →
22	American Public University System Grad rate: 54.3%	WV	+$156,697	$54,342	$16,358	$18,304	Full ROI →
23	Yale University Grad rate: 97.0%	CT	+$151,990	$67,636	$85,120	$15,000	Full ROI →
24	Pepperdine University Grad rate: 84.4%	CA	+$150,658	$68,168	$85,202	$23,625	Full ROI →
25	Barnard College Grad rate: 92.2%	NY	+$147,938	$67,484	$84,023	$19,000	Full ROI →
26	University of Kansas Grad rate: 68.0%	KS	+$144,383	$55,764	$25,215	$22,249	Full ROI →
27	Berry College Grad rate: 69.4%	GA	+$132,804	$59,783	$55,714	N/A	Full ROI →
28	Whitworth University Grad rate: 72.3%	WA	+$126,473	$62,993	$65,711	$22,624	Full ROI →
29	Harvard University Grad rate: 97.5%	MA	+$124,692	$64,803	$82,842	N/A	Full ROI →
30	Georgia College & State University Grad rate: 62.0%	GA	+$119,483	$55,013	$27,781	$21,965	Full ROI →
31	Brigham Young University Grad rate: 80.4%	UT	+$113,708	$52,654	$20,879	$11,745	Full ROI →
32	University of Virginia-Main Campus Grad rate: 95.3%	VA	+$111,831	$56,434	$38,132	$18,015	Full ROI →
33	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Grad rate: 86.3%	VA	+$106,842	$55,387	$32,040	$24,250	Full ROI →
34	University of Cincinnati-Main Campus Grad rate: 71.8%	OH	+$100,768	$54,415	$28,783	$24,000	Full ROI →
35	State University of New York at Cortland Grad rate: 68.5%	NY	+$90,781	$53,451	$26,413	$24,138	Full ROI →
36	Old Dominion University Grad rate: 46.2%	VA	+$90,483	$53,616	$27,180	$24,531	Full ROI →
37	Presbyterian College Grad rate: 62.7%	SC	+$84,486	$59,501	$57,271	$27,000	Full ROI →
38	University of Scranton Grad rate: 80.3%	PA	+$74,940	$61,061	$67,795	$26,000	Full ROI →
39	Arizona State University Digital Immersion Grad rate: 27.4%	AZ	+$73,742	$47,189	N/A	$22,250	Full ROI →
40	University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Grad rate: 84.8%	IL	+$68,510	$53,204	$32,134	$20,025	Full ROI →
41	University of Colorado Colorado Springs Grad rate: 43.9%	CO	+$65,034	$51,184	$23,713	$17,625	Full ROI →
42	California State University-East Bay Grad rate: 45.5%	CA	+$64,703	$51,115	$22,803	$19,544	Full ROI →
43	University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Grad rate: 93.2%	MI	+$64,696	$53,177	$33,345	$18,862	Full ROI →
44	Quinnipiac University Grad rate: 77.3%	CT	+$64,366	$60,974	$69,666	$27,000	Full ROI →
45	Northwest Missouri State University Grad rate: 55.6%	MO	+$64,216	$49,792	$22,906	N/A	Full ROI →
46	Middlebury College Grad rate: 93.0%	VT	+$63,695	$62,953	$82,260	$19,500	Full ROI →
47	Trinity College Grad rate: 83.2%	CT	+$62,950	$63,453	$83,090	$25,000	Full ROI →
48	San Francisco State University Grad rate: 52.2%	CA	+$62,738	$51,336	$25,258	$17,000	Full ROI →
49	North Central College Grad rate: 67.3%	IL	+$62,679	$57,848	$54,803	$25,977	Full ROI →
50	University of La Verne Grad rate: 64.4%	CA	+$61,484	$58,872	$61,564	$22,000	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 Political Science and Government Degrees by State

Browse Political Science and Government programs ranked by 20-year ROI in every state that offers this degree.