Colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling in the Pacific Northwest
Question 1
Where are you right now?
Why we ask: a laid-off week and a thinking-about-a-move week look nothing alike. No résumé, no account.
Key facts
- #1 Oregon Health & Science University, OR: $101k
- #2 University of Portland, OR: $83k
- #3 DigiPen Institute of Technology, WA: $80k
- 89 colleges ranked across the Pacific Northwest
- Data as of November 2026
For comparison: $53k across the typical college in this list.
- 1Oregon Health & Science University OR$101k
- 2University of Portland OR$83k
- 3DigiPen Institute of Technology WA$80k
- 4Gonzaga University WA$79k
- 5Linfield University OR$79k
- 6University of Washington-Seattle Campus WA$78k
- 7University of Washington-Bothell Campus WA$78k
- 8University of Washington-Tacoma Campus WA$78k
- 9Seattle University WA$75k
- 10Oregon Institute of Technology OR$72k
What stands out
- The top ten is tightly packed: Oregon Health & Science University leads on $101k, and #10 Oregon Institute of Technology is at $72k.
- Oregon Health & Science University reaches #1 on a sample of 836 students enrolled, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.
- University of Washington-Seattle Campus is the largest market in the top ten, with 31,942 students enrolled behind its figure.
- Colleges with fewer than 500 students enrolled are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful.
Why this ranking matters
What it shows
Median earnings ten years after enrolling show what former students of a college go on to earn, as the Department of Education publishes it.
How to use it
Compare colleges within the same level and field, and read earnings next to completion rate and net price. Earnings reflect who enrolls and what they study as much as the college.
The top 25
- 1
Oregon Health & Science University OR
$101k
- Completion rate
- Not available
- Net price a year
- Not available
- Public
- 836 students
Based on 836 students enrolled.
Oregon Health & Science University: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 2
University of Portland OR
$83k
- Completion rate
- 80%
- Net price a year
- $28,210
- Private nonprofit
- 2,957 students
Based on 2,957 students enrolled.
- 3
DigiPen Institute of Technology WA
$80k
- Completion rate
- 61%
- Net price a year
- $44,446
- Private for-profit
- 995 students
Based on 995 students enrolled.
DigiPen Institute of Technology: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 4
Gonzaga University WA
$79k
- Completion rate
- 86%
- Net price a year
- $35,119
- Private nonprofit
- 5,198 students
Based on 5,198 students enrolled.
- 5
Linfield University OR
$79k
- Completion rate
- 70%
- Net price a year
- $26,536
- Private nonprofit
- 1,621 students
Based on 1,621 students enrolled.
- 6
- Completion rate
- 85%
- Net price a year
- $14,091
- Public
- 31,942 students
Based on 31,942 students enrolled.
University of Washington-Seattle Campus: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 7
- Completion rate
- 65%
- Net price a year
- $12,319
- Public
- 5,457 students
Based on 5,457 students enrolled.
University of Washington-Bothell Campus: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 8
- Completion rate
- 63%
- Net price a year
- $10,163
- Public
- 4,185 students
Based on 4,185 students enrolled.
University of Washington-Tacoma Campus: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 9
Seattle University WA
$75k
- Completion rate
- 76%
- Net price a year
- $34,662
- Private nonprofit
- 4,062 students
Based on 4,062 students enrolled.
- 10
Oregon Institute of Technology OR
$72k
- Completion rate
- 54%
- Net price a year
- $15,706
- Public
- 2,892 students
Based on 2,892 students enrolled.
Oregon Institute of Technology: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 11
University of Puget Sound WA
$70k
- Completion rate
- 68%
- Net price a year
- $38,394
- Private nonprofit
- 1,594 students
Based on 1,594 students enrolled.
University of Puget Sound: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 12
City University of Seattle WA
$69k
- Completion rate
- Not available
- Net price a year
- Not available
- Private nonprofit
- 1,137 students
Based on 1,137 students enrolled.
City University of Seattle: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 13
Washington State University WA
$69k
- Completion rate
- 61%
- Net price a year
- $14,971
- Public
- 21,099 students
Based on 21,099 students enrolled.
Washington State University: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 14
Whitman College WA
$68k
- Completion rate
- 81%
- Net price a year
- $33,313
- Private nonprofit
- 1,531 students
Based on 1,531 students enrolled.
- 15
Pacific Lutheran University WA
$67k
- Completion rate
- 69%
- Net price a year
- $19,589
- Private nonprofit
- 2,401 students
Based on 2,401 students enrolled.
Pacific Lutheran University: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 16
Seattle Pacific University WA
$65k
- Completion rate
- 62%
- Net price a year
- $24,488
- Private nonprofit
- 1,762 students
Based on 1,762 students enrolled.
Seattle Pacific University: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 17
Oregon State University OR
$64k
- Completion rate
- 70%
- Net price a year
- $19,604
- Public
- 30,743 students
Based on 30,743 students enrolled.
- 18
- Completion rate
- 56%
- Net price a year
- $18,048
- Public
- 1,044 students
Based on 1,044 students enrolled.
Oregon State University-Cascades Campus: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 19
Reed College OR
$63k
- Completion rate
- 71%
- Net price a year
- $33,013
- Private nonprofit
- 1,320 students
Based on 1,320 students enrolled.
- 20
Western Washington University WA
$63k
- Completion rate
- 65%
- Net price a year
- $21,193
- Public
- 13,544 students
Based on 13,544 students enrolled.
Western Washington University: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 21
Lewis & Clark College OR
$62k
- Completion rate
- 75%
- Net price a year
- $36,013
- Private nonprofit
- 2,120 students
Based on 2,120 students enrolled.
- 22
Saint Martin's University WA
$62k
- Completion rate
- 52%
- Net price a year
- $28,119
- Private nonprofit
- 1,158 students
Based on 1,158 students enrolled.
Saint Martin's University: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 23
Walla Walla University WA
$62k
- Completion rate
- 60%
- Net price a year
- $23,329
- Private nonprofit
- 1,252 students
Based on 1,252 students enrolled.
- 24
Central Washington University WA
$62k
- Completion rate
- 54%
- Net price a year
- $18,476
- Public
- 7,833 students
Based on 7,833 students enrolled.
Central Washington University: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 25
University of Oregon OR
$61k
- Completion rate
- 72%
- Net price a year
- $22,182
- Public
- 20,497 students
Based on 20,497 students enrolled.
Full ranking
All 89 colleges that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.
How this ranking works
Earnings are the median earnings of students who received federal financial aid, ten years after they first enrolled, as published in the Department of Education College Scorecard. They describe past students, not a promise for future ones.
Only colleges with at least 500 students and published earnings are ranked. A college's earnings reflect who enrolls and what they study as much as what the college teaches.
Sample bar: colleges with fewer than 500 students enrolled are not ranked.
Sources: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard (median earnings, completion, net price), as held in our college tables. Data as of November 2026.
Our job data covers professional roles on the career sites of employers we track, so figures describe that market, not every job. Spot an error? Tell us.
Questions
- Which certification ranks first: colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling in the pacific northwest?
- Oregon Health & Science University leads the Pacific Northwest among colleges for earnings: its former students earn a median of $101k ten years after enrolling, against $53k for the typical college in this list.
- How many colleges are ranked?
- 89 colleges have at least 500 students enrolled, so the list has 89 entries.
- How is the ranking calculated?
- Earnings are the median earnings of students who received federal financial aid, ten years after they first enrolled, as published in the Department of Education College Scorecard. They describe past students, not a promise for future ones. Only colleges with at least 500 students and published earnings are ranked. A college's earnings reflect who enrolls and what they study as much as what the college teaches.
- How often is it updated?
- Every month. This is the November 2026 edition. Older editions stay on this site at their own dated addresses.
More rankings
- Best college towns for junior jobs in the Pacific Northwest
- Counties with the lowest unemployment in the Pacific Northwest
- Counties where unemployment fell the most in the Pacific Northwest
- Counties with the highest share of white-collar workers in the Pacific Northwest
- Counties with the most jobs in AI-exposed sectors in the Pacific Northwest
- Best cities for junior jobs in the Pacific Northwest
- Colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling
- Four-year colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling
- Community and two-year colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling
- Colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling in Alabama
- Colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling in Arkansas
- Colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling in Arizona
- All rankings
Cite this ranking
NextChapter, “Colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling in the Pacific Northwest,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/colleges-with-the-highest-earnings-in-the-pacific-northwest
Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/colleges-with-the-highest-earnings-in-the-pacific-northwest">Colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling in the Pacific Northwest (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>
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