Highest graduate earnings – private nonprofit universities

These 50 private nonprofit universities rank highest by median earnings 10 years after entry, drawn from 666 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	$143,372
2	Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health SciencesMA	$125,557
3	Stanford UniversityCA	$124,080
4	Babson CollegeMA	$123,938
5	Bentley UniversityMA	$120,959
6	Carnegie Mellon UniversityPA	$114,862
7	University of PennsylvaniaPA	$111,371
8	Princeton UniversityNJ	$110,066
9	Santa Clara UniversityCA	$109,183
10	Stevens Institute of TechnologyNJ	$108,772
11	Lehigh UniversityPA	$105,584
12	Claremont McKenna CollegeCA	$104,736
13	Cornell UniversityNY	$104,043
14	Boston CollegeMA	$103,937
15	Georgetown UniversityDC	$103,494
16	Worcester Polytechnic InstituteMA	$103,470
17	Columbia University in the City of New YorkNY	$102,491
18	Rensselaer Polytechnic InstituteNY	$102,051
19	Harvard UniversityMA	$101,817
20	Rose-Hulman Institute of TechnologyIN	$101,253
21	Yale UniversityCT	$100,533
22	Villanova UniversityPA	$100,423
23	University of Notre DameIN	$99,980
24	Duke UniversityNC	$97,800
25	Dartmouth CollegeNH	$97,434
26	Kettering UniversityMI	$94,823
27	Washington and Lee UniversityVA	$94,810
28	Bucknell UniversityPA	$93,807
29	Brown UniversityRI	$93,487
30	Northeastern UniversityMA	$92,538
31	Northeastern University Professional ProgramsMA	$92,538
32	University of Southern CaliforniaCA	$92,498
33	University of ChicagoIL	$91,885
34	Vanderbilt UniversityTN	$91,565
35	Lafayette CollegePA	$91,410
36	George Washington UniversityDC	$90,873
37	Trinity CollegeCT	$90,779
38	College of the Holy CrossMA	$90,543
39	Bryant UniversityRI	$90,008
40	University of San FranciscoCA	$89,812
41	Rice UniversityTX	$89,718
42	Clarkson UniversityNY	$89,696
43	Northwestern UniversityIL	$89,363
44	Milwaukee School of EngineeringWI	$89,070
45	Fairfield UniversityCT	$88,794
46	Williams CollegeMA	$88,665
47	Union CollegeNY	$88,604
48	Case Western Reserve UniversityOH	$87,989
49	Johns Hopkins UniversityMD	$87,555
50	Providence CollegeRI	$87,054

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 private nonprofit 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 666 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.