Cornell is one of the best universities in the country, and the stats show that. It costs a lot to go there (annual price of $29,651), but students usually only rack up $27,244 in loans. On top of that, the graduation rate is 87%, and students usually have a median salary of $87,830 six years after graduation.
Cornell University’s acceptance rate is on par with other universities on this list at 8%. Cornell’s best-ranked major is computer science.
Georgetown is another expensive one, costing $35,965 per year, but graduates usually leave with an average debt of $26,733 – lots of scholarship opportunities! The graduation rate of Georgetown is 87%, and the median salary is $83,222 six years after graduation.
That makes it easier to pay off those student loans. Georgetown has an acceptance rate around the same as others in the area at 13%. According to Niche, political science and government is Georgetown’s best-ranked major.
Williams is a little cheaper than others on the list. The annual price is $26,775, and students usually leave with $13,893 in loans. The graduation rate is also a little higher at 74%, and those who do graduate can look forward to a $71,745 median salary six years after graduation.
Williams College only accepts 10% of applicants, however. Williams College’s best-ranked major is econometrics and quantitative economics.
Students of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor can look forward to cheap tuition ($16,792 annually), but they also tend to have around $27,474 in student loans following graduation. That’s not too bad, considering the median salary is $73,762 six years after graduation.
The graduation rate sits at 82%. If this university sounds great to you, you may be happy to learn it has an 18% acceptance rate. Computer and information sciences is Ann Arbor’s best-ranked major.
Carnegie Mellon University has a slightly lower graduation rate than others on the list – 82% – but it’s certainly nothing to scoff at. The cost of the university is also slightly higher than the others at $34,550 annually, but students usually only have $29,092 in student loans.
All this cost doesn’t come without reward; the median salary is $105,360 six years after graduation. Carnegie Mellon University is easier to get into than other top colleges, with an 11% acceptance rate. Carnegie Mellon’s best-ranked major is computer science.
Dartmouth has always been at the top, but it’s good to know what you’re getting into. The average annual price is $31,120, but students leave with a mere $24,135 in student loans. The graduation rate for Dartmouth is 84%.
The only thing about Dartmouth is the median salary six years after graduation is slightly lower than competitors at $82,541. Dartmouth is incredibly hard to get into, however. It has a mere 6% acceptance rate. Finally, the best-ranked major is social science.
St. Louis is a wonderful place to go to college, especially Washington University. The graduation rate is 87%, with an annual cost of $20,768. There are a lot of scholarship opportunities, which makes it easy for students to go without racking up a lot of student loans.
The average student loan total is $21,347. On top of that, the median salary is $78,073 six years after graduation. Washington University has a 12% acceptance rate. Washington University's best-ranked major is computer science.
The University of Notre Dame has a high graduation rate of 93%, and according to the university admissions site, 96% of students graduate on time. The annual price for Notre Dame is $29,974, but students only have average total student loans of $32,014.
This is probably thanks to the high median salary of $86,210 six years after graduation. The acceptance rate is 12%, which is slightly higher than others on the list. Notre Dame’s best-ranked major is finance.
Harvey Mudd College has the lowest graduation rate on the list, but one of the highest starting salaries. The graduation rate sits at 78%, with a median salary of $115,107 six years after graduation.
It’s on par with other top colleges in terms of cost ($39,671 annually), and the average total student loan amount is $28,766. The hard part is getting in since the acceptance rate is 13%. Looking to learn about multi/interdisciplinary studies? That’s Harvey Mudd’s best-ranked major.
Amherst College is actually a fantastic price considering its location. The annual cost is $25,035, with students leaving with total loans of $23,700. The average starting salary is $62,537. The graduation rate is pretty good since 72% finish.
The hard part? Getting in. Amherst has a 10% acceptance rate. Like many others on the list, Amherst’s best-ranked major is mathematics.
Swarthmore College has a lot going for it. The annual net price is just under $44,000, and it has a graduation rate of 94.1%. The only problem is that the average total student loans are a little high at $35,372, with an acceptance rate of 12.8%. The average starting salary is $44,000, which is fine, but slightly lower compared to competitors. Swarthmore College’s best-ranked major is mathematics.
Brown’s acceptance rate is so low that it’s single digits – 9.3%. Still, it has a remarkable 96.1% graduation rate. The annual price is average at $52,469, with average student loans totaling $31,179. Good thing the average starting salary is $48,000. Brown has the best ranked applied mathematics major.
Considering Berkeley is in California, we expected it to cost a little more. The annual net price is only $26,856, but students still leave with $24,948 in student loans. The graduation rate is also slightly lower than others at 90.7%, but the starting salary is on par with other top universities ($49,000). Finally, the acceptance rate is 16.9%. Business administration and management is Berkeley’s best-ranked major.
Being part of the University of California, the Los Angeles campus is also very well priced at $23,180 annually. Average total student loans total to $23,648, which is lower than Berkeley, but higher than we’d think considering the cost of tuition. The graduation rate is higher than Berkeley at 91%, with an average starting salary of $46,000. More good news? The acceptance rate is 18%. The Los Angeles campus’s best-ranked major is history.
Georgia Institute of Technology, or Georgia Tech, is a rollercoaster of good and bad. First, the bad. The graduation rate is only 81.5%, and average student loans total $59,512. Now, for the good. The annual net price is pretty low – $22,597. The average starting salary is also higher than some others on the list at $55,000. Sounding like the perfect place? The acceptance rate is 25.8%, so getting in is slightly easier. Georgia Tech’s best-ranked major is mechanical engineering.
Johns Hopkins University has had a great reputation for a long time, so it isn’t a surprise that it’s landed on this list. Let’s look at the specifics. The annual net price is $51,383, with total student loans averaging around $28,144. The graduation rate sits at 93.1%, and the average starting salary is $49,000. The only bad news about this place is that the acceptance rate is 12.8%, making it hard to get in. Johns Hopkins is popular for medical majors, but the best-ranked major is mathematics.
The University of Chicago isn’t cheap, but it may be worth it. The annual net price is $52,213, and students leave with a whopping total of $51,524 on average. The average starting salary, unfortunately, doesn’t reflect this high cost at $44,000. The good part is that the graduation rate is 92.9%, but getting in is hard. The acceptance rate is 7.9%, and the best ranked major is economics.
Texas is a big place with a lot of top-notch universities, but Rice won out as one of the best. The annual net price is just over $43,000, but the average total student loans is a little higher than normal at $33,456. The graduation rate is 91.5%, with an average starting salary is $47,000. Finally, the acceptance rate is 15.3%. Rice University has a heavy-hitting best-ranked major: biochemistry, biophysics, and molecular biology.
Columbia University has a reputation for a couple of things. First, it’s hard to get into, and the statistics agree. The acceptance rate is 6.8%. The second is that it’s expensive. The cost is $45,708 annually, which is actually reasonably priced. Students leave with around $42,960 in student loans, and 94.8% graduate. The place where Columbia really shines is the average starting salary, $53,000. Fine and studio arts is Columbia’s best-ranked major.
Considering Vanderbilt’s reputation, we’d thought it would cost more. That being said, the annual price is only $41,576. Average student loans total $32,204, which isn’t bad considering the average starting salary is $44,000. The graduation rate is 92.9%, but the acceptance rate is pretty low, at 10.7%. Vanderbilt University’s best-ranked major is general psychology.
Northwestern University is another Illinois option that’s fairly priced. It costs $52,475 annually, and students leave with a lower student loan total of $28,096. The best part about graduating from here is that the starting salary is $47,000. While the graduation rate is 93.3%, the acceptance rate is only 10.7%. Northwestern University’s best-ranked major is sociology.
The University of Pennsylvania has a beautiful campus, which is why it may attract students. The annual net price costs $51,256, and average total loans amount to $30,932. That doesn’t seem like much considering the average starting salary is $54,000. University of Pennsylvania also has a high graduation rate at 95.6%, but the acceptance rate is in the single digits (9.4%). The best-ranked major? Business administration and management.
Duke University’s annual net price sits at $48,258, and the student loan total is $24,456. It’s super easy to pay off those loans thanks to the average $48,000 starting salary. The graduation rate sits at 94.8%, but the acceptance rate (10.8%) means it isn’t easy to into. Duke’s best-ranked major is economics.
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has the best price of any college on the list. It costs $17,164 annually, and the average student loans total $25,808. On top of that, the starting salary isn’t too terrible at $39,000. The graduation rate is 90.3%, while the acceptance rate is 26.9%. Chapel Hill’s best-ranked major is chemistry.
California Institute of Technology has a higher annual cost ($47,398) compared to other California universities on this list, but you get what you pay for. The graduation rate is 91.5%, and the average starting salary is whopping $60,000. The average student loan total is also pretty low at $23,952. The only downside is the acceptance rate, which is 8.1%. The best-ranked major at this university is chemistry.
Stanford is pretty prestigious, so you’d expect it to come with a price to match. The annual net price is only $42,428, but students have higher student loans at $32,620. That’s not too difficult to pay off, however, considering the average starting salary is $54,000. The graduation rate is 94.6%, and the best-ranked major is general psychology. The bad news is that Stanford has a 4.8% acceptance rate, the lowest on the list.
Despite being so prestigious, Yale doesn’t drown students in debt. The annual price is $45,909, but the total student loans average out to be $19,848. The average starting salary is lower than we thought, $48,000, but it isn’t too bad. The graduation rate of Yale is 96.2%, and the best-ranked major is history – even more surprises! As for Yale’s acceptance rate, it sits at a low 6.3%.
Princeton doesn’t accept a lot of applicants. The acceptance rate is only 6.5%. The good news is that it doesn’t cost a lot! It has an annual net price of $38,650, and students usually only leave with loans totaling around $17,804 – that’s one of the lowest on the list. The graduation rate is 96.8%, with an average starting salary of $53,000. Political science and government are Princeton’s best-ranked majors.
Harvard is one of the top universities in the nation, but it isn’t easy to get into. It has a 5.4% acceptance rate, but those that do get accepted almost always graduate (96.8% graduation rate). It’s not cheap, but that’s to be expected in Massachusetts. The annual net price is $50,262, and students usually leave with $29,488 in student loans. The average starting salary is $48,000, so it’s easy to pay that off. Harvard’s best-ranked major is history.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is the best college in the nation, but there are some surprises with this university. First, it isn’t super expensive. The annual net price is $39,263, but students still leave with $30,120 in student loans on average. Second, the graduation rate is 91.3%, which isn’t low, but we expected higher. Finally, the acceptance rate is 7.9%. The best ranked major is general biology. Unsurprisingly, it has the highest average starting salary of $67,000.
