Four-year colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling
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 Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MA: $143k
- #2 MCPHS University, MA: $126k
- #3 Stanford University, CA: $124k
- 100 colleges ranked across the United States
- Data as of November 2026
For comparison: $56k across the typical college in this list.
- 1Massachusetts Institute of Technology MA$143k
- 2MCPHS University MA$126k
- 3Stanford University CA$124k
- 4Babson College MA$124k
- 5Bentley University MA$121k
- 6Carnegie Mellon University PA$115k
- 7University of Pennsylvania PA$111k
- 8Princeton University NJ$110k
- 9Santa Clara University CA$109k
- 10Stevens Institute of Technology NJ$109k
What stands out
- The top ten is tightly packed: Massachusetts Institute of Technology leads on $143k, and #10 Stevens Institute of Technology is at $109k.
- Babson College reaches #4 on a sample of 2,728 students enrolled, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.
- University of Pennsylvania is the largest market in the top ten, with 10,650 students enrolled behind its figure.
- Colleges with fewer than 1,000 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
- Completion rate
- 96%
- Net price a year
- $20,111
- Private nonprofit
- 4,535 students
Based on 4,535 students enrolled.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 2
MCPHS University MA
$126k
- Completion rate
- 62%
- Net price a year
- $39,545
- Private nonprofit
- 3,451 students
Based on 3,451 students enrolled.
- 3
Stanford University CA
$124k
- Completion rate
- 92%
- Net price a year
- $13,807
- Private nonprofit
- 7,554 students
Based on 7,554 students enrolled.
- 4
Babson College MA
$124k
- Completion rate
- 93%
- Net price a year
- $40,514
- Private nonprofit
- 2,728 students
Based on 2,728 students enrolled.
- 5
Bentley University MA
$121k
- Completion rate
- 87%
- Net price a year
- $37,930
- Private nonprofit
- 4,474 students
Based on 4,474 students enrolled.
- 6
Carnegie Mellon University PA
$115k
- Completion rate
- 94%
- Net price a year
- $31,944
- Private nonprofit
- 7,304 students
Based on 7,304 students enrolled.
Carnegie Mellon University: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 7
University of Pennsylvania PA
$111k
- Completion rate
- 97%
- Net price a year
- $28,699
- Private nonprofit
- 10,650 students
Based on 10,650 students enrolled.
University of Pennsylvania: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 8
Princeton University NJ
$110k
- Completion rate
- 98%
- Net price a year
- $6,128
- Private nonprofit
- 5,709 students
Based on 5,709 students enrolled.
- 9
Santa Clara University CA
$109k
- Completion rate
- 88%
- Net price a year
- $50,062
- Private nonprofit
- 6,552 students
Based on 6,552 students enrolled.
- 10
Stevens Institute of Technology NJ
$109k
- Completion rate
- 87%
- Net price a year
- $41,346
- Private nonprofit
- 4,222 students
Based on 4,222 students enrolled.
Stevens Institute of Technology: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 11
Lehigh University PA
$106k
- Completion rate
- 88%
- Net price a year
- $36,931
- Private nonprofit
- 5,898 students
Based on 5,898 students enrolled.
- 12
Claremont McKenna College CA
$105k
- Completion rate
- 91%
- Net price a year
- $28,849
- Private nonprofit
- 1,388 students
Based on 1,388 students enrolled.
Claremont McKenna College: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 13
Cornell University NY
$104k
- Completion rate
- 95%
- Net price a year
- $28,690
- Private nonprofit
- 15,995 students
Based on 15,995 students enrolled.
- 14
Boston College MA
$104k
- Completion rate
- 91%
- Net price a year
- $41,704
- Private nonprofit
- 10,085 students
Based on 10,085 students enrolled.
- 15
Georgetown University DC
$103k
- Completion rate
- 95%
- Net price a year
- $40,815
- Private nonprofit
- 7,569 students
Based on 7,569 students enrolled.
- 16
Worcester Polytechnic Institute MA
$103k
- Completion rate
- 90%
- Net price a year
- $43,071
- Private nonprofit
- 5,447 students
Based on 5,447 students enrolled.
Worcester Polytechnic Institute: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 17
- Completion rate
- 94%
- Net price a year
- $12,116
- Public
- 18,785 students
Based on 18,785 students enrolled.
Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 18
West Coast University-Orange County CA
$103k
- Completion rate
- 60%
- Net price a year
- $32,879
- Private for-profit
- 3,192 students
Based on 3,192 students enrolled.
West Coast University-Orange County: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 19
West Coast University-Los Angeles CA
$103k
- Completion rate
- 31%
- Net price a year
- $53,020
- Private for-profit
- 2,673 students
Based on 2,673 students enrolled.
West Coast University-Los Angeles: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 20
West Coast University-Ontario CA
$103k
- Completion rate
- 39%
- Net price a year
- $49,590
- Private for-profit
- 2,671 students
Based on 2,671 students enrolled.
West Coast University-Ontario: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 21
- Completion rate
- 96%
- Net price a year
- $21,590
- Private nonprofit
- 8,973 students
Based on 8,973 students enrolled.
Columbia University in the City of New York: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 22
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute NY
$102k
- Completion rate
- 84%
- Net price a year
- $36,228
- Private nonprofit
- 5,714 students
Based on 5,714 students enrolled.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 23
Harvard University MA
$102k
- Completion rate
- 98%
- Net price a year
- $19,066
- Private nonprofit
- 7,601 students
Based on 7,601 students enrolled.
- 24
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology IN
$101k
- Completion rate
- 78%
- Net price a year
- $42,513
- Private nonprofit
- 2,309 students
Based on 2,309 students enrolled.
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology: programs, pay and open jobs nearby
- 25
Yale University CT
$101k
- Completion rate
- 96%
- Net price a year
- $23,777
- Private nonprofit
- 6,758 students
Based on 6,758 students enrolled.
Full ranking
All 100 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 four-year colleges with at least 1,000 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 1,000 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: four-year colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling?
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology leads the United States among four-year colleges for earnings: its former students earn a median of $143k ten years after enrolling, against $56k for the typical college in this list.
- How many colleges are ranked?
- 100 colleges have at least 1,000 students enrolled, so the list has 100 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 four-year colleges with at least 1,000 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.
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- Colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling in the Northeast
- Colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling in New England
- Colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling in the Mid-Atlantic
- Colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling in the Southeast
- Colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling in the Southwest
- Colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling in the Midwest
- All rankings
Cite this ranking
NextChapter, “Four-year colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/four-year-colleges-with-the-highest-earnings
Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/four-year-colleges-with-the-highest-earnings">Four-year colleges with the highest earnings 10 years after enrolling (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>
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