Best Education, General 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

188

Colleges with salary data

Average 20-Yr Net ROI

+$166,783

Across all programs

Average Annual Cost

$39,576

Cost of attendance

# College State 20-Yr Net ROI Median Salary Annual Cost Avg Debt
1 Northeastern University

Grad rate: 90.8%

 MA +$853,794 $92,825 $81,353 N/A Full ROI →
2 California State University-Dominguez Hills

Grad rate: 46.7%

 CA +$766,142 $81,852 $15,449 N/A Full ROI →
3 California State University-Fresno

Grad rate: 55.5%

 CA +$668,280 $77,279 $18,650 N/A Full ROI →
4 University of Massachusetts Global CA +$605,570 $75,615 $33,365 N/A Full ROI →
5 California State University-Bakersfield

Grad rate: 49.5%

 CA +$563,690 $72,066 $18,815 N/A Full ROI →
6 California State University-Sacramento

Grad rate: 55.1%

 CA +$548,572 $71,700 $22,714 N/A Full ROI →
7 California State Polytechnic University-Pomona

Grad rate: 66.5%

 CA +$538,596 $71,197 $22,672 N/A Full ROI →
8 University of California-Santa Barbara

Grad rate: 85.5%

 CA +$529,288 $72,142 $36,776 N/A Full ROI →
9 University of Washington-Bothell Campus

Grad rate: 68.5%

 WA +$527,876 $70,840 $24,462 N/A Full ROI →
10 University of Washington-Tacoma Campus

Grad rate: 58.5%

 WA +$527,744 $70,840 $24,528 N/A Full ROI →
11 California State University-Stanislaus

Grad rate: 56.6%

 CA +$525,356 $70,122 $18,542 N/A Full ROI →
12 University of Washington-Seattle Campus

Grad rate: 84.0%

 WA +$516,236 $70,840 $30,282 N/A Full ROI →
13 California State University-San Marcos

Grad rate: 55.3%

 CA +$489,132 $68,571 $21,144 N/A Full ROI →
14 California State University-Monterey Bay

Grad rate: 62.4%

 CA +$481,786 $68,691 $26,017 N/A Full ROI →
15 Heritage University

Grad rate: 42.4%

 WA +$456,516 $67,789 $29,632 N/A Full ROI →
16 University of Michigan-Flint

Grad rate: 45.5%

 MI +$453,482 $67,007 $23,329 N/A Full ROI →
17 Sonoma State University

Grad rate: 60.1%

 CA +$433,302 $66,139 $24,739 N/A Full ROI →
18 Purdue University-Main Campus

Grad rate: 83.1%

 IN +$433,046 $65,909 $22,567 N/A Full ROI →
19 Washington State University

Grad rate: 62.0%

 WA +$428,848 $66,160 $27,176 N/A Full ROI →
20 California State University-East Bay

Grad rate: 45.5%

 CA +$422,174 $65,389 $22,803 N/A Full ROI →
21 University of Alaska Fairbanks

Grad rate: 35.3%

 AK +$418,036 $65,020 $21,182 N/A Full ROI →
22 George Fox University

Grad rate: 70.1%

 OR +$416,008 $68,346 $55,456 N/A Full ROI →
23 National University

Grad rate: 44.0%

 CA +$413,388 $66,381 $37,116 N/A Full ROI →
24 Jacksonville State University

Grad rate: 51.7%

 AL +$411,796 $64,932 $23,422 N/A Full ROI →
25 University of San Diego

Grad rate: 82.1%

 CA +$410,682 $70,022 $74,879 N/A Full ROI →
26 Stanford University

Grad rate: 94.0%

 CA +$408,376 $70,635 $82,162 N/A Full ROI →
27 Quinnipiac University

Grad rate: 77.3%

 CT +$396,748 $68,804 $69,666 N/A Full ROI →
28 Southern Utah University

Grad rate: 58.5%

 UT +$395,476 $63,725 $19,512 N/A Full ROI →
29 Adelphi University

Grad rate: 68.2%

 NY +$383,112 $66,900 $57,444 N/A Full ROI →
30 University of California-Riverside

Grad rate: 76.3%

 CA +$378,810 $64,438 $34,975 N/A Full ROI →
31 Antioch University-Santa Barbara CA +$378,480 $60,924 N/A N/A Full ROI →
32 Antioch University-New England NH +$378,480 $60,924 N/A N/A Full ROI →
33 Antioch University-Seattle WA +$378,480 $60,924 N/A N/A Full ROI →
34 Antioch University OH +$378,480 $60,924 N/A N/A Full ROI →
35 Antioch University-Los Angeles CA +$378,480 $60,924 N/A N/A Full ROI →
36 California Baptist University

Grad rate: 61.2%

 CA +$377,444 $66,113 $52,408 N/A Full ROI →
37 Touro University California CA +$368,580 $60,429 N/A N/A Full ROI →
38 Touro University Nevada NV +$368,580 $60,429 N/A N/A Full ROI →
39 California State University-Los Angeles

Grad rate: 52.0%

 CA +$359,994 $61,715 $17,153 N/A Full ROI →
40 Azusa Pacific University

Grad rate: 62.8%

 CA +$356,150 $65,281 $54,735 N/A Full ROI →
41 Grand Canyon University

Grad rate: 44.0%

 AZ +$352,874 $62,793 $31,493 N/A Full ROI →
42 San Francisco State University

Grad rate: 52.2%

 CA +$343,284 $61,690 $25,258 N/A Full ROI →
43 Harvard University

Grad rate: 97.5%

 MA +$323,296 $66,449 $82,842 N/A Full ROI →
44 University of California-Los Angeles

Grad rate: 92.6%

 CA +$304,514 $60,890 $36,643 N/A Full ROI →
45 Cambridge College MA +$300,740 $57,037 N/A N/A Full ROI →
46 Northwest University-Center for Online and Extended Education

Grad rate: 34.0%

 WA +$300,414 $60,113 $30,923 N/A Full ROI →
47 University of California-Berkeley

Grad rate: 93.5%

 CA +$295,484 $61,045 $42,708 N/A Full ROI →
48 Eastern Washington University

Grad rate: 48.4%

 WA +$294,636 $59,009 $22,772 N/A Full ROI →
49 University of Wyoming

Grad rate: 60.3%

 WY +$288,718 $58,673 $22,371 N/A Full ROI →
50 University of California-San Diego

Grad rate: 87.7%

 CA +$287,510 $60,008 $36,325 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 Education, General Degrees by State

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

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