New England Colleges That Are The Best Investment For Grads
Monday, July 29, 2013
Worcester's own WPI offers one of the biggest return on investments for its graduates, according to a new ranking.
The ranking details private universities whose graduates out-earn non-degree holders by at least $1 million during their careers. Institutions on the list make up the top 1 percent of U.S. colleges as measured by return on investment, according to ACO.
To see which New England colleges made the Million Dollar ranking for best return on investment, see the slides, below.
"Some of today’s most recognizable universities appear on the list, despite higher tuition rates," ACO founder Dan Schuessler said about the new ranking. "While ACO is dedicated to promoting affordability, these colleges provide significant value to their students. Students pay to gain the skills necessary for long-term career success."
Out of several thousand colleges analyzed, 46 total private colleges made the list--9 from New England.
Topping the national list for 2013 was Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, California, followed by California Institute of Technology at #2 and Polytechnic Institute of New York University (NYU-Poly) at #3.
Calculating a college's return on investment
Each school’s return on investment figure derived from a three-tiered calculation, according to ACO: estimated 30-year earnings of graduates minus both projected earnings without a degree and four years of tuition and fees. Key data sources and partners leveraged for the analysis include the following:
- NCES, the primary federal entity for collecting and analyzing data related to education. It provides consistent, reliable, complete, and accurate indicators of education status and trends.
- IPEDS, the primary federal source for data on colleges, universities, and technical and vocational postsecondary schools in the U.S.
- Carnegie Classification, a framework widely used in the study of higher education, both as a way to represent and control for institutional differences, and also in the design of research studies to ensure adequate representation of sampled institutions, students, or faculty.
- Payscale.com, a premier salary data collection organization.
"More than ever families are insisting that colleges provide a strong return for their financial investment," said Kristin R. Tichenor, senior vice president at WPI. "We remain committed to providing challenging and comprehensive project-based learning that results in long and successful careers for our graduates. We are pleased to be recognized on this list for the value that we provide."
See which New England colleges offer the best return on investment for grads, below.
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