College ROI Report

Updated 2024

College Salary Report

Best-value Colleges for Business Careers

A business or finance career path can definitely lead to a healthy salary—or better—but before you command a boardroom or ring the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange, you’ll probably need a college degree. And since you’re a future mogul, you should be thinking in terms of college return on investment for business majors before you choose a college.

Read More
Find out exactly what you should be paid
RankSchool Name20 Year Net ROI
Total 4 Year Cost
Graduation Rate
Typical Years to Graduate
Average Loan Amount
Rank:1181School Name:20 Year Net ROI:$244,000Total 4 Year Cost:$273,000Graduation Rate:69%Typical Years to Graduate:4Average Loan Amount:$70,900
Rank:1182School Name:20 Year Net ROI:$244,000Total 4 Year Cost:$95,200Graduation Rate:38%Typical Years to Graduate:5Average Loan Amount:$28,300
Rank:1183School Name:20 Year Net ROI:$244,000Total 4 Year Cost:$153,000Graduation Rate:57%Typical Years to Graduate:4Average Loan Amount:$27,400
Rank:1184School Name:20 Year Net ROI:$244,000Total 4 Year Cost:$82,600Graduation Rate:25%Typical Years to Graduate:5Average Loan Amount:$18,100
Rank:1185School Name:20 Year Net ROI:$244,000Total 4 Year Cost:$89,000Graduation Rate:41%Typical Years to Graduate:4Average Loan Amount:$30,500
Rank:1186School Name:20 Year Net ROI:$244,000Total 4 Year Cost:$89,000Graduation Rate:41%Typical Years to Graduate:4Average Loan Amount:$30,500
Rank:1187School Name:20 Year Net ROI:$243,000Total 4 Year Cost:$197,000Graduation Rate:67%Typical Years to Graduate:4Average Loan Amount:$33,700
Rank:1188School Name:20 Year Net ROI:$243,000Total 4 Year Cost:$89,500Graduation Rate:41%Typical Years to Graduate:5Average Loan Amount:$24,400
Rank:1189School Name:20 Year Net ROI:$243,000Total 4 Year Cost:$104,000Graduation Rate:43%Typical Years to Graduate:5Average Loan Amount:$22,900
Rank:1190School Name:
Elmira College (Private)
20 Year Net ROI:$243,000Total 4 Year Cost:$202,000Graduation Rate:56%Typical Years to Graduate:4Average Loan Amount:$36,200

Palo Alto’s Stanford University perennially appears high on a number of lists in Payscale’s College ROI Report, as does Ivy League Cornell University. Located in Ithaca, New York, business is just one area where Cornell alumni shine, but if you are interested in a business career, or a finance career path, you may want to aim high and dress warm, because Cornell is not only a great value, it’s pretty cold in the winter.

The University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business is world-renowned, and is one of the only business schools in the United States with a strong undergraduate program, so it’s no surprise that Penn provides one of the highest returns on investment for alumni who go on to work in business and finance. UPenn is the alma mater of Peter Lynch of the Magellan Fund, Elon Musk and even Warren Buffet. (Warren Buffet dropped out of Wharton’s undergraduate program after just two years as a student there.)

A career path in business can lead to hundreds of different types of jobs, including anything from business analyst, to investment banker, to buyer, to accountant, to underwriter and many, many more.