Is college worth it financially?

It depends on the school and — crucially — your major. Computer Science and Engineering graduates from top schools earn $100K+ within 4 years, giving an ROI ratio above 2x. Liberal Arts graduates from lower-ranked schools may take 15+ years to recoup costs. Use this tool to see the ROI for your specific school and major combination.

What is the ROI of a Computer Science degree?

CS graduates from top schools earn $85K–$171K in their first year. At MIT, CS graduates earn a median of $154K after one year and $199K after four years — an ROI ratio above 3x. Even at mid-tier state schools, CS graduates typically earn $65K–$90K, giving a strong ROI.

Which schools have the best ROI?

Schools with the strongest ROI ratios include Colorado School of Mines, Georgia Tech, MIT, Cal Poly SLO, Babson College, and several University of California campuses. These schools combine strong graduate earnings with relatively moderate tuition — especially for in-state students.

Does your major matter more than your school for earnings?

Often, yes. A Computer Science graduate from a mid-ranked state school may out-earn a Philosophy graduate from an Ivy League university. This tool lets you filter by major to see exact earnings at each school, so you can make a data-driven comparison.

Is Your Dream School Worth It?

See what graduates actually earn vs. what you'll pay. Filter by major to get YOUR answer — CS at MIT vs. CS at BU tells a very different story.

Georgia Tech CS grads earn $102K — more than 6 of 8 Ivies

Nursing: fastest payback of any major

Colorado Mines engineers out-earn Harvard grads

3,472

schools ranked

major filters

Real

earnings data

10yr

earnings window

How ROI is calculated:ROI Ratio = median earnings ÷ annual tuition. Overall ROI uses 10-year median earnings (College Scorecard). Major-specific ROI uses the best available earnings for that major (1yr or 4yr post-graduation). Higher ratio = better return.

Filter by Major

School Type

117 schools

School ↕	Tuition/yr ↕	10yr Earnings ↕	ROI Score ↕	Verdict	Visual
Florida State University Tallahassee, FL · Private	$19K per year	$62K major-specific	3.3x	Strong ROI	earncost
Georgia Tech Atlanta, GA · Private	$33K per year	$103K major-specific	3.1x	Strong ROI	earncost
Cal Poly SLO San Luis Obispo, CA · Private	$31K per year	$91K major-specific	2.9x	Strong ROI	earncost
Purdue University West Lafayette, IN · Private	$29K per year	$72K major-specific	2.5x	Strong ROI	earncost
University of Florida Gainesville, FL · Private	$29K per year	$72K major-specific	2.5x	Strong ROI	earncost
MIT Cambridge, MA · Private	$60K per year	$143K major-specific	2.4x	Strong ROI	earncost
UIUC Champaign, IL · Private	$35K per year	$81K major-specific	2.4x	Strong ROI	earncost
University of Georgia Athens, GA · Private	$30K per year	$69K major-specific	2.3x	Strong ROI	earncost
Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA · Private	$37K per year	$82K major-specific	2.2x	Strong ROI	earncost
Colorado School of Mines Golden, CO · Private	$44K per year	$97K major-specific	2.2x	Strong ROI	earncost
NC State Raleigh, NC · Private	$32K per year	$69K major-specific	2.2x	Strong ROI	earncost
Harvey Mudd College Claremont, CA · Private	$66K per year	$139K major-specific	2.1x	Strong ROI	earncost
Rutgers University New Brunswick, NJ · Private	$36K per year	$74K major-specific	2.1x	Strong ROI	earncost
University of Maryland College Park, MD · Private	$40K per year	$83K major-specific	2.1x	Strong ROI	earncost
Caltech Pasadena, CA · Private	$63K per year	$129K major-specific	2.0x	Strong ROI	earncost
UC Berkeley Berkeley, CA · Private	$46K per year	$92K major-specific	2.0x	Strong ROI	earncost
Stanford University Stanford, CA · Private	$62K per year	$124K major-specific	2.0x	Good ROI	earncost
University of Minnesota Minneapolis, MN · Private	$36K per year	$69K major-specific	1.9x	Good ROI	earncost
University of Washington Seattle, WA · Private	$42K per year	$78K major-specific	1.9x	Good ROI	earncost
UCLA Los Angeles, CA · Private	$45K per year	$83K major-specific	1.9x	Good ROI	earncost
Princeton University Princeton, NJ · Private	$60K per year	$110K major-specific	1.8x	Good ROI	earncost
Santa Clara University Santa Clara, CA · Private	$59K per year	$109K major-specific	1.8x	Good ROI	earncost
UC San Diego La Jolla, CA · Private	$46K per year	$85K major-specific	1.8x	Good ROI	earncost
UNC Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC · Private	$39K per year	$72K major-specific	1.8x	Good ROI	earncost
University of Wisconsin-Madison Madison, WI · Private	$41K per year	$74K major-specific	1.8x	Good ROI	earncost
Clemson University Clemson, SC · Private	$39K per year	$72K major-specific	1.8x	Good ROI	earncost
Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA · Private	$64K per year	$115K major-specific	1.8x	Good ROI	earncost
Texas A&M University College Station, TX · Private	$40K per year	$72K major-specific	1.8x	Good ROI	earncost
UC Irvine Irvine, CA · Private	$45K per year	$81K major-specific	1.8x	Good ROI	earncost
UT Austin Austin, TX · Private	$43K per year	$75K major-specific	1.8x	Good ROI	earncost
UC Davis Davis, CA · Private	$46K per year	$81K major-specific	1.8x	Good ROI	earncost
Harvard University Cambridge, MA · Private	$59K per year	$102K major-specific	1.7x	Good ROI	earncost
Lehigh University Bethlehem, PA · Private	$62K per year	$106K major-specific	1.7x	Good ROI	earncost
University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA · Private	$66K per year	$111K major-specific	1.7x	Good ROI	earncost
University of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, PA · Private	$40K per year	$66K major-specific	1.7x	Good ROI	earncost
UC Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA · Private	$46K per year	$75K major-specific	1.6x	Good ROI	earncost
Claremont McKenna College Claremont, CA · Private	$64K per year	$105K major-specific	1.6x	Good ROI	earncost
Georgetown University Washington, DC · Private	$65K per year	$103K major-specific	1.6x	Good ROI	earncost
Cornell University Ithaca, NY · Private	$66K per year	$104K major-specific	1.6x	Good ROI	earncost
Penn State University Park, PA · Private	$40K per year	$63K major-specific	1.6x	Good ROI	earncost
Indiana University Bloomington, IN · Private	$40K per year	$64K major-specific	1.6x	Good ROI	earncost
Ohio State University Columbus, OH · Private	$38K per year	$60K major-specific	1.6x	Good ROI	earncost
Michigan State East Lansing, MI · Private	$43K per year	$67K major-specific	1.6x	Good ROI	earncost
Villanova University Villanova, PA · Private	$65K per year	$100K major-specific	1.6x	Good ROI	earncost
Yale University New Haven, CT · Private	$65K per year	$101K major-specific	1.6x	Good ROI	earncost
Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA · Private	$68K per year	$104K major-specific	1.5x	Good ROI	earncost
Rice University Houston, TX · Private	$58K per year	$90K major-specific	1.5x	Good ROI	earncost
University of Virginia Charlottesville, VA · Private	$58K per year	$87K major-specific	1.5x	Average ROI	earncost
College of the Holy Cross Worcester, MA · Private	$61K per year	$91K major-specific	1.5x	Average ROI	earncost
Duke University Durham, NC · Private	$66K per year	$98K major-specific	1.5x	Average ROI	earncost

Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$19K

Earnings

$62K

ROI

3.3x

Georgia Tech

Atlanta, GA · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$33K

Earnings

$103K

ROI

3.1x

Cal Poly SLO

San Luis Obispo, CA · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$31K

Earnings

$91K

ROI

2.9x

Purdue University

West Lafayette, IN · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$29K

Earnings

$72K

ROI

2.5x

University of Florida

Gainesville, FL · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$29K

Earnings

$72K

ROI

2.5x

MIT

Cambridge, MA · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$60K

Earnings

$143K

ROI

2.4x

UIUC

Champaign, IL · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$35K

Earnings

$81K

ROI

2.4x

University of Georgia

Athens, GA · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$30K

Earnings

$69K

ROI

2.3x

Virginia Tech

Blacksburg, VA · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$37K

Earnings

$82K

ROI

2.2x

Colorado School of Mines

Golden, CO · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$44K

Earnings

$97K

ROI

2.2x

NC State

Raleigh, NC · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$32K

Earnings

$69K

ROI

2.2x

Harvey Mudd College

Claremont, CA · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$66K

Earnings

$139K

ROI

2.1x

Rutgers University

New Brunswick, NJ · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$36K

Earnings

$74K

ROI

2.1x

University of Maryland

College Park, MD · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$40K

Earnings

$83K

ROI

2.1x

Caltech

Pasadena, CA · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$63K

Earnings

$129K

ROI

2.0x

UC Berkeley

Berkeley, CA · Private

Strong ROI

Tuition/yr

$46K

Earnings

$92K

ROI

2.0x

Stanford University

Stanford, CA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$62K

Earnings

$124K

ROI

2.0x

University of Minnesota

Minneapolis, MN · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$36K

Earnings

$69K

ROI

1.9x

University of Washington

Seattle, WA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$42K

Earnings

$78K

ROI

1.9x

UCLA

Los Angeles, CA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$45K

Earnings

$83K

ROI

1.9x

Princeton University

Princeton, NJ · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$60K

Earnings

$110K

ROI

1.8x

Santa Clara University

Santa Clara, CA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$59K

Earnings

$109K

ROI

1.8x

UC San Diego

La Jolla, CA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$46K

Earnings

$85K

ROI

1.8x

UNC Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$39K

Earnings

$72K

ROI

1.8x

University of Wisconsin-Madison

Madison, WI · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$41K

Earnings

$74K

ROI

1.8x

Clemson University

Clemson, SC · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$39K

Earnings

$72K

ROI

1.8x

Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, PA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$64K

Earnings

$115K

ROI

1.8x

Texas A&M University

College Station, TX · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$40K

Earnings

$72K

ROI

1.8x

UC Irvine

Irvine, CA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$45K

Earnings

$81K

ROI

1.8x

UT Austin

Austin, TX · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$43K

Earnings

$75K

ROI

1.8x

UC Davis

Davis, CA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$46K

Earnings

$81K

ROI

1.8x

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$59K

Earnings

$102K

ROI

1.7x

Lehigh University

Bethlehem, PA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$62K

Earnings

$106K

ROI

1.7x

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$66K

Earnings

$111K

ROI

1.7x

University of Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh, PA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$40K

Earnings

$66K

ROI

1.7x

UC Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara, CA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$46K

Earnings

$75K

ROI

1.6x

Claremont McKenna College

Claremont, CA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$64K

Earnings

$105K

ROI

1.6x

Georgetown University

Washington, DC · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$65K

Earnings

$103K

ROI

1.6x

Cornell University

Ithaca, NY · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$66K

Earnings

$104K

ROI

1.6x

Penn State

University Park, PA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$40K

Earnings

$63K

ROI

1.6x

Indiana University

Bloomington, IN · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$40K

Earnings

$64K

ROI

1.6x

Ohio State University

Columbus, OH · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$38K

Earnings

$60K

ROI

1.6x

Michigan State

East Lansing, MI · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$43K

Earnings

$67K

ROI

1.6x

Villanova University

Villanova, PA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$65K

Earnings

$100K

ROI

1.6x

Yale University

New Haven, CT · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$65K

Earnings

$101K

ROI

1.6x

Boston College

Chestnut Hill, MA · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$68K

Earnings

$104K

ROI

1.5x

Rice University

Houston, TX · Private

Good ROI

Tuition/yr

$58K

Earnings

$90K

ROI

1.5x

University of Virginia

Charlottesville, VA · Private

Average ROI

Tuition/yr

$58K

Earnings

$87K

ROI

1.5x

College of the Holy Cross

Worcester, MA · Private

Average ROI

Tuition/yr

$61K

Earnings

$91K

ROI

1.5x

Duke University

Durham, NC · Private

Average ROI

Tuition/yr

$66K

Earnings

$98K

ROI

1.5x

Page 1 of 3 · 117 schools

Frequently Asked Questions

Does your major matter more than your school?

Often, yes. A Computer Science graduate from a mid-ranked state school may out-earn a Philosophy graduate from an Ivy. Use the Major filter above to see the specific earnings at each school for your intended field.

What is a good ROI ratio for college?

We consider 2x or above to be Strong ROI — meaning graduates earn at least twice the annual tuition cost per year. 1.5–2x is Good, 1–1.5x is Average, and below 1x means annual earnings are less than annual tuition.

Where does the data come from?

Earnings data comes from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, which tracks median earnings of federal student aid recipients. Tuition data comes from IPEDS. Major-specific earnings are sourced from Scorecard field-of-study data.

Data from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard and IPEDS. Earnings reflect median outcomes after enrollment. ROI calculations are estimates — individual results vary significantly.