(*10*)
When the price of a college degree can exceed $500,000, it is good to contemplate colleges with reputations for offering college students with the training and expertise essential to thrive after graduation.
And relating to the best return on funding, the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta earns high marks for the third 12 months in a row, in line with The Princeton Review’s latest rankings.
The publication thought-about colleges’ scores in the following classes to find out which colleges provide the best worth:
- Academics: based mostly on admissions selectivity and pupil surveys
- Financial assist: based mostly on school-reported information and pupil opinion
- College prices: based mostly on the distinction between the college’s sticker worth and common scholarship and grant awards
Of course, the quantity you finally pay in your school training could rely much less on a faculty’s sticker worth and extra in your family’s financial situation. It’s doable for some college students to go to an costly school without spending a dime or near nothing in the event that they qualify for and receive federal or institutional aid.
But with comparatively low tuition charges and excessive median earnings amongst former college students, Georgia Tech affords the best worth for college students out of the practically 400 colleges Princeton Review thought-about. Like other schools known for their academic rigor, Georgia Tech’s concentrate on science, expertise, engineering and math seemingly contributes to the high salaries college students go on to command.
Forbes named Georgia Tech one in every of the “new Ivies” in 2024 and once more in 2025. The checklist recognized extremely selective universities that employers say are on par, if not higher, than the eight Ivy League colleges.
Still, “there isn’t a sense of cut-throat academic rivalry” at Georgia Tech, a pupil wrote in Princeton Review’s survey. “Everyone is much more helpful and supportive of one another.”
Here are the 10 public colleges with the best ROI, in line with The Princeton Review, alongside with tuition figures for the 2025-26 educational 12 months, per the colleges’ web sites; common annual web costs and median earnings amongst college students 10 years after attendance, in line with Department of Education data.
1. Georgia Institute of Technology
- 2025-26 in-state tuition: $10,512
- 2025-26 out-of-state tuition: $33,596
- Average web worth 2023-24: $13,289
- Median earnings: $102,772
2. University of Virginia
- 2025-26 in-state tuition: $16,258 to $28,398, relying on program and sophistication 12 months
- 2025-26 out-of-state tuition: $55,436 to $68,114, relying on program and sophistication 12 months
- Average web worth 2023-24: $22,881
- Median earnings: $86,863
3. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- 2025-26 in-state tuition: $7,020
- 2025-26 out-of-state tuition: $43,152
- Average web worth 2023-24: $12,983
- Median earnings: $72,200
4. University of California—Irvine
- 2025-26 in-state tuition: $13,602
- 2025-26 out-of-state tuition: $51,204
- Average web worth 2023-24: $12,840
- Median earnings: $80,735
5. University of California—Berkeley
- 2025-26 in-state tuition: $17,478
- 2025-26 out-of-state tuition: $55,080
- Average web worth 2023-24: $14,979
- Median earnings: $92,446
6. University of California—San Diego
- 2025-26 in-state tuition: $14,934
- 2025-26 out-of-state tuition: $52,536
- Average web worth 2023-24: $11,750
- Median earnings: $84,943
7. University of Michigan
- 2025-26 in-state tuition: $18,346 to $20,648, relying on class 12 months
- 2025-26 out-of-state tuition: $63,962 to $68,444, relying on class 12 months
- Average web worth 2023-24: $14,832
- Median earnings: $83,648
8. University of Washington
- 2025-26 in-state tuition: $13,406
- 2025-26 out-of-state tuition: $44,640
- Average web worth 2023-24: $13,485
- Median earnings: $78,466
9. North Carolina State University
- 2025-26 in-state tuition: $9,028
- 2025-26 out-of-state tuition: $33,993
- Average web worth 2023-24: $16,931
- Median earnings: $68,758
10. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- 2025-26 in-state tuition: $18,046 to $23,426, relying on main
- 2025-26 out-of-state tuition: $38,398 to $46,498, relying on main
- Average web worth 2023-24: $15,201
- Median earnings: $81,504
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