College ROI Report
Updated 2024
Best-value Colleges for Technology Careers
A career in tech is a smart choice if you want to see maximum return on investment for the money you spend on your education.
| Rank | School Name | 20 Year Net ROI | Total 4 Year Cost | Graduation Rate | Typical Years to Graduate | Average Loan Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank:1 | School Name: Harvey Mudd College (Private) | 20 Year Net ROI:$1,565,000 | Total 4 Year Cost:$326,000 | Graduation Rate:92% | Typical Years to Graduate:4 | Average Loan Amount:$29,900 |
| Rank:2 | School Name: Stanford University (Private) | 20 Year Net ROI:$1,527,000 | Total 4 Year Cost:$314,000 | Graduation Rate:95% | Typical Years to Graduate:4 | Average Loan Amount:$52,000 |
| Rank:3 | School Name: | 20 Year Net ROI:$1,500,000 | Total 4 Year Cost:$273,000 | Graduation Rate:83% | Typical Years to Graduate:4 | Average Loan Amount:$33,200 |
| Rank:4 | School Name:_50px.png) Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Private) | 20 Year Net ROI:$1,478,000 | Total 4 Year Cost:$302,000 | Graduation Rate:95% | Typical Years to Graduate:4 | Average Loan Amount:$55,200 |
| Rank:5 | School Name: University of California-Berkeley (In-State) | 20 Year Net ROI:$1,476,000 | Total 4 Year Cost:$165,000 | Graduation Rate:94% | Typical Years to Graduate:4 | Average Loan Amount:$29,000 |
| Rank:6 | School Name:University of California-Berkeley (Out-of-State) | 20 Year Net ROI:$1,357,000 | Total 4 Year Cost:$285,000 | Graduation Rate:94% | Typical Years to Graduate:4 | Average Loan Amount:$29,000 |
| Rank:7 | School Name: at West Point_50px.png) United States Military Academy (Service Academy) | 20 Year Net ROI:$1,305,000 | Total 4 Year Cost:$0 | Graduation Rate:88% | Typical Years to Graduate:4 | Average Loan Amount:- |
| Rank:8 | School Name:_50px.png) Carnegie Mellon University (Private) | 20 Year Net ROI:$1,293,000 | Total 4 Year Cost:$309,000 | Graduation Rate:92% | Typical Years to Graduate:4 | Average Loan Amount:$26,100 |
| Rank:9 | School Name: Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus (In-State) | 20 Year Net ROI:$1,287,000 | Total 4 Year Cost:$117,000 | Graduation Rate:93% | Typical Years to Graduate:5 | Average Loan Amount:$28,100 |
| Rank:10 | School Name: | 20 Year Net ROI:$1,266,000 | Total 4 Year Cost:$326,000 | Graduation Rate:95% | Typical Years to Graduate:4 | Average Loan Amount:$67,400 |
According to Payscale’s College ROI Report technology careers can lead to some of the highest returns on investment for your dollar — but choosing the right school can mean a difference of up to one million dollars over the first 20 years of your career.
Tech jobs, which include job titles such as software developer, product manager, program manager, IT administration, web developer, UX designer, data scientist, statistician and more, are in high demand in today’s economy. You don’t have to major in computer science or math in order to work in tech either — many tech jobs are held by people who studied a wide variety of subjects other than computer engineering in college. So even if you earn your bachelor’s degree in humanities, communication, or even and design, as long as you also take classes (or teach yourself) in technical skills like programming, coding, statistics and engineering, you can land a high-paying tech career.
Since Northern California’s Silicon Valley is the heart of the tech industry, it isn’t surprising that many of the College ROIs seen by technology workers come from the surrounding area. Stanford University in Palo Alto, CA, consistently provides high 20-year ROIs for students who attend the school. Despite the fact that Stanford is an expensive private school, Stanford students usually do so well, especially in the tech field, that it is one of the best college values around for math and science careers. In nearby Berkeley, California, alumni of UC Berkeley also usually see an extraordinarily high college return on investment if technology careers are in their future. Even out-of-state residents, who pay significantly more to attend a University of California school, get a great value.
On the East Coast, Ivy League school Columbia University typically delivers a robust 20-year net ROI for tech students. Located in Manhattan in New York City, Columbia equips students with a strong network of both established blue-chip employers and up and coming tech start-ups.
Other schools to consider if you want the highest college return on investment technology careers can offer include Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Carnegie Mellon University and the Georgia Institute of Technology. In fact, it’s hard to find a college with a low return on investment if you end up working in tech.
More rankings for best-value colleges:
Put a badge on it
Did your school rank well in one or more of the categories of the 2024 Payscale College ROI Report? You can easily share that good news with the world by placing a College ROI Report badge on your website.
EMBED CODE:
College salary report
Get up-to-date information on which colleges, degrees, and majors pay the most with breakouts for bachelor's degrees and associate's degrees by state and by type as well as common jobs by major with mid-career median pay.
Go to the report
The impact of a college degree on compensation
Learn how a bachelor’s degree affects salaries and which jobs see the most differentiation and get thought leadership and HR industry insights on how to manage graduate pay premiums and prepare for skills-based pay.
Go to the report