Highest graduate earnings – U.S. universities

These 50 U.S. universities rank highest by median earnings 10 years after entry, drawn from 2,151 institutions with reported data in the U.S. Department of Education data for 2020-21 (Scorecard). Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge, MA) leads at $143,372.

Institutions ranked by Median earnings (10 yr).
#	Institution	Median earnings (10 yr)
1	Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyMA · Private	$143,372
2	Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health SciencesMA · Private	$125,557
3	Stanford UniversityCA · Private	$124,080
4	Babson CollegeMA · Private	$123,938
5	Bentley UniversityMA · Private	$120,959
6	Carnegie Mellon UniversityPA · Private	$114,862
7	University of PennsylvaniaPA · Private	$111,371
8	Princeton UniversityNJ · Private	$110,066
9	Santa Clara UniversityCA · Private	$109,183
10	Stevens Institute of TechnologyNJ · Private	$108,772
11	Lehigh UniversityPA · Private	$105,584
12	Claremont McKenna CollegeCA · Private	$104,736
13	St Paul's School of Nursing-QueensNY · Private for-profit	$104,403
14	Cornell UniversityNY · Private	$104,043
15	Boston CollegeMA · Private	$103,937
16	Georgetown UniversityDC · Private	$103,494
17	Worcester Polytechnic InstituteMA · Private	$103,470
18	Georgia Institute of Technology-Main CampusGA · Public	$102,772
19	West Coast University-Anaheim-Orange CountyCA · Private for-profit	$102,672
20	West Coast University-OntarioCA · Private for-profit	$102,672
21	West Coast University-TexasTX · Private for-profit	$102,672
22	Columbia University in the City of New YorkNY · Private	$102,491
23	Rensselaer Polytechnic InstituteNY · Private	$102,051
24	Harvard UniversityMA · Private	$101,817
25	Rose-Hulman Institute of TechnologyIN · Private	$101,253
26	Yale UniversityCT · Private	$100,533
27	Villanova UniversityPA · Private	$100,423
28	University of Notre DameIN · Private	$99,980
29	Duke UniversityNC · Private	$97,800
30	Dartmouth CollegeNH · Private	$97,434
31	Colorado School of MinesCO · Public	$97,335
32	SUNY Maritime CollegeNY · Public	$95,951
33	Kettering UniversityMI · Private	$94,823
34	Washington and Lee UniversityVA · Private	$94,810
35	Bucknell UniversityPA · Private	$93,807
36	Brown UniversityRI · Private	$93,487
37	Northeastern UniversityMA · Private	$92,538
38	Northeastern University Professional ProgramsMA · Private	$92,538
39	University of Southern CaliforniaCA · Private	$92,498
40	University of California-BerkeleyCA · Public	$92,446
41	Chamberlain University-GeorgiaGA · Private for-profit	$92,405
42	Chamberlain University-IllinoisIL · Private for-profit	$92,405
43	Chamberlain University-New JerseyNJ · Private for-profit	$92,405
44	Chamberlain University-TexasTX · Private for-profit	$92,405
45	Texas Tech University Health Sciences CenterTX · Public	$92,348
46	University of ChicagoIL · Private	$91,885
47	Vanderbilt UniversityTN · Private	$91,565
48	Lafayette CollegePA · Private	$91,410
49	George Washington UniversityDC · Private	$90,873
50	Trinity CollegeCT · Private	$90,779

A data ranking, not an Ibex endorsement or quality rating. Ranked solely on the metric named above using U.S. Department of Education data for 2020-21 (Scorecard); federal collections lag the current academic year, and some measures are no longer published at all, so the most recent figure is not always a recent one. Institutions that do not report this metric are excluded. Figures and peer context appear on each institution’s profile.

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Frequently asked

Which of these U.S. universities ranks highest by median earnings 10 years after entry?

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge, MA), at $143,372. It leads 50 institutions shown here, drawn from 2,151 with reported data.

How is this ranking calculated?

On one disclosed metric only: by median earnings 10 years after entry, from College Scorecard & IPEDS, 2020-21 (Scorecard). Institutions that do not report the metric are excluded. It is a data ranking, not an Ibex endorsement, quality rating or reputation survey, and no part of it is estimated or AI-generated.

How current is the data?

This list is built from the College Scorecard release of June 10, 2026 and the newest IPEDS collection on disk, using the most recent figure each of them publishes for the metric it ranks: College Scorecard & IPEDS, 2020-21 (Scorecard). Federal collections lag the current academic year by two to three years, so the newest published figure is not always a recent one; the release the leaderboard is dated on is printed under it.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard & IPEDS (each measure carries its own collection year; see the methodology), with NSF NCSES (HERD), the Clery Act & EADA collections, Census ACS, BLS Employment Projections, WICHE & the FSA Direct Loan Dashboard. Compiled by Ibex Insights. For informational benchmarking only, not financial, investment, or accreditation advice. See the methodology.