The typical starting salaries for graduates of the 30 best colleges, ranked
- When it comes to deciding on where to attend college, there's a lot to consider — including how much money you'll be making with your newly earned degree.
- GOBankingRates recently released a list of the starting salaries for graduates from the 30 best colleges.
- All colleges on the list led to starting salaries of more than $50,000.
The college application process can be grueling, but deciding where to attend college once admission offers start rolling in can be even more stressful.
There are a lot of aspects incoming students need to consider, like undergraduate programs, rankings, location, and tuition — not to mention how much their new degree will earn them in the working world. After all, the end goal after college is to get a good job, and decent pay doesn't hurt considering student loan burdens these days.
GOBankingRates recently released a list of the starting salaries for graduates from the 30 best colleges, based on US News & World Report's Best Colleges rankings. Using Payscale, GOBankingRates researched salaries for alumni graduated from each college with zero to five years of experience.
All the colleges on the list have starting salaries of more than $50,000. The college with the highest starting salary is the California Institute of Technology, at $84,000.
Below, how much you can expect to make post-graduation at the 30 best colleges in the US, ranked from lowest to highest starting salaries.
30. Wake Forest University
Starting salary: $56,000
Cost of attendance: $52,348
School ranking: 27
29. Emory University
Starting salary: $56,700
Cost of attendance: $50,590
School ranking: 21 (tie)
28. University of California — Los Angeles
Starting salary: $57,500
Cost of attendance: $13,285
School ranking: 21 (tie)
27. University of Chicago
Starting salary: $58,100
Cost of attendance: $48,759
School ranking: 3
26. New York University
Starting salary: $58,700
Cost of attendance: $51,828
School ranking: 30
25. University of Michigan — Ann Arbor
Starting salary: $59,300
Cost of attendance: $26,243
School ranking: 28
24. University of Southern California
Starting salary: $59,400
Cost of attendance: $55,320
School ranking: 21 (tie)
23. Northwestern University
Starting salary: $59,500
Cost of attendance: $54,120
School ranking: 11 (tie)
22. University of Virginia
Starting salary: $59,500
Cost of attendance: $44,274
School ranking: 25 (tie)
21. Washington University in St. Louis
Starting salary: $60,100
Cost of attendance: $52,400
School ranking: 18 (tie)
20. Tufts University
Starting salary: $60,400
Cost of attendance: $55,172
School ranking: 29
19. Vanderbilt University
Starting salary: $61,100
Cost of attendance: $48,600
School ranking: 14 (tie)
18. Georgetown University
Starting salary: $61,400
Cost of attendance: $53,520
School ranking: 20
17. University of Notre Dame
Starting salary: $62,500
Cost of attendance: $53,391
School ranking: 18
16. Brown University
Starting salary: $63,000
Cost of attendance: $52,231
School ranking: 14
15. Johns Hopkins University
Starting salary: $63,200
Cost of attendance: $48,645
School ranking: 11 (tie)
14. Duke University
Starting salary: $65,300
Cost of attendance: $55,960
School ranking: 9
13. University of California — Berkley
Starting salary: $65,400
Cost of attendance: $14,184
School ranking: 21 (tie)
12. Cornell University
Starting salary: $65,600
Cost of attendance: $54,818
School ranking: 14 (tie)
11. Rice University
Starting salary: $65,700
Cost of attendance: $46,600
School ranking: 14 (tie)
10. Columbia University
Starting salary: $66,000
Cost of attendance: $57,208
School ranking: 5
9. Dartmouth College
Starting salary: $66,300
Cost of attendance: $53,496
School ranking: 11
8. Yale University
Starting salary: $66,800
Cost of attendance: $53,430
School ranking: 3 (tie)
7. University of Pennsylvania
Starting salary: $68,100
Cost of attendance: $49,220
School ranking: 8
6. Harvard University
Starting salary: $69,200
Cost of attendance: $44,990
School ranking: 2
5. Princeton University
Starting salary: $69,800
Cost of attendance: $49,330
School ranking: 1
4. Carnegie Mellon University
Starting salary: $70,900
Cost of attendance: $54,244
School ranking: 25
3. Stanford University
Starting salary: $73,300
Cost of attendance: $49,617
School ranking: 5 (tie)
2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Starting salary: $78,800
Cost of attendance: $49,892
School ranking: 5 (tie)
1. California Institute of Technology
Starting salary: $82,000
Cost of attendance: $50,487
School ranking: 10