Selecting the right college is an important step for prospective students.
There are many factors to consider when weighing up where to study, and potential income after graduating could be a factor.
Economic modelers have ranked for Newsweek private colleges by expected salary for graduates. Those listed below ranked lowest on the East Coast.
Researchers studied a dataset of professional profiles from colleges alumni and attributing wages to each individual according to the national median wage for their current occupation of employment. Wage data were obtained from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Employment & Wages Statistics (OESW) program.
Only institutions with more than 1,000 profiles in the database were considered.
25. Marist College ($85,665)
Founded in 1929, Marist College is a comprehensive, independent college grounded in the liberal arts, based in Poughkeepsie, New York.
Among the most popular majors available at Marist College are Business, Communications and Psychology.
24. Adelphi University ($85,426)
Adelphi University is a private college based in Garden City, New York and centers elsewhere on the East Coast.
Popular majors at this highly awarded, nationally ranked instating include Nursing, Psychology and Biology.
23. Quinnipiac University ($85,307)
Quinnipiac University is a private coeducational college based in suburban Hamden, Connecticut.
The most popular majors at this university boasting a graduation rate of 78 percent include Health Professions, Nursing and Finance.
Quinnipiac was ranked among the U.S.'s top 100 universities for its graduates' median 10-year earnings and among top three percent of all institutions for long-term return on investment in a recent Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce study, the college points out. Separately, career website Zippia has ranked Quinnipiac #1 in the nation the last two years for getting a job after graduation.
22. Barry University ($85,232)
Barry University is a private Catholic college in Miami Shores, Florida, founded in 1940.
The most popular majors at this diverse institution include Business, Nursing and Public Administration.
Barry University has pointed Newsweek to a gradreports.com guide, based on U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard data, that ranks Barry University as tied for fourth in salary score among Florida colleges, and above the nationwide median.
21. Campbell University ($84,670)
Campbell University is a private Baptist college in Buies Creek, North Carolina that was founded in 1887.
Popular majors at this small institution include Business, Biology, and Kinesiology and Exercise Science.
20. Suffolk University ($84,435)
Founded in 1906, Suffolk University is a private research college based in Boston, Massachusetts with a reported graduation rate of 59 percent.
The most popular majors at the university include Marketing, Finance and Business.
19. Simmons University ($84,578)
Established in 1899, Simmons University is a private woman-centered undergraduate college and private co-educational graduate school based in Boston.
Popular majors include Nursing, Kinesiology and Exercise Science at this small institution with a reported acceptance rate of 73 percent.
18. Monmouth University ($84,184)
Founded in 1933, Monmouth University is a private college based in West Long Branch, New Jersey.
Popular majors at this small academic institution include Business, Communications, and Health Service Preparatory Studies.
17. The University of Tampa ($83,564)
The University of Tampa is a private college in Tampa, Florida, offering more than 200 programs of study, including 22 master's degrees.
This distinguished medium-sized private university attracts students in Finance, Business and Marketing.
16. Sacred Heart University ($82,743)
Founded in 1963, Sacred Heart University is a private, Catholic college based in Fairfield, Connecticut.
Popular majors at this mid-size institution with a reported acceptance rate of 64 percent, include Nursing, Marketing and Business.
15. Pratt Institute-Main ($82,732)
Pratt is a small private college located in Brooklyn, New York.
The university is recognized for its graduate programs including those in the fine arts, architecture, interior design, industrial design and graphic design.
14. Saint Leo University ($81,565)
Established in 1889, Saint Leo University is a private Roman Catholic liberal arts college based in St. Leo, Florida.
Popular Majors at this mid-size institution include Business, Liberal Arts and Humanities, and Criminal Justice and Safety Studies.
13. High Point University ($80,843)
Founded in 1924, High Point University is a private liberal arts college in High Point, North Carolina.
Described as a "premier life skills university," popular majors at this college include Communications, Business, and Kinesiology and Exercise Science.
High Point University questioned the validity of this study and states that 97 percent of its graduates are employed or in graduate school within six months of earning their degree, which is 11 points above the national average, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers.
Since 2005, the college said, HPU has "undergone a total transformation" by establishing six new academic schools, adding dozens of new majors, opening new facilities, more than tripling enrollment and more than quadrupling the size of campus.
"The positive impact of HPU's transformation not captured in this methodology is obvious when you visit our campus, speak to our students, alumni and parents, and consider that HPU's enrollment, national rankings, program offerings and prestige have soared since 2005," a spokesperson said.
12. University of New Haven ($80,397)
The University of New Haven is a private college based in West Haven, Connecticut.
Popular majors at this East Coast university boasting an acceptance rate of 83 percent include Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Administration, Forensic Science and Technology, and Homeland Security and Disaster Management.
11. The New School ($79,257)
Founded in 1919, the New School is a private liberal arts college based in New York.
The university has a graduation rate of 66 percent, and notable New School alumni include co-founder of Facebook Chris Hughes, former President of Israel Shimon Peres, and numerous actors and fashion designers.
New School said it has educated some of the world's most creative and innovative leaders.
"Our students include prominent figures in business, media and technology, public policy and academia as well as some of the most respected designers, artists, musicians and actors of our time," a spokesperson told Newsweek.
10. American Public University System ($79,901)
American Public University System is a private, for-profit online college system composed of the American Military University and American Public University.
Popular majors at the university, which reportedly has a graduation rate of 12 percent, include business, liberal arts and humanities, and homeland security.
American Public University System told Newsweek it has a "30-year proven track record of making education more accessible and affordable," and pointed to a 2019 Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce report in which it ranked in the top two percent for return on educational investment compared to colleges and universities nationwide
"A bachelor's degree currently costs $285 per credit hour, or approximately $37,000 in tuition and fees," a spokesperson said. "Helping reduce student debt is something APUS takes very seriously – we have only raised undergraduate tuition by $35 per credit hour over the last 20 years."
9. Wilmington University ($77,470)
Founded in 1968, Wilmington University is a private, non-sectarian college with its main campus in Delaware.
Among the more-than 100 majors on offer at the university are nursing, behavioral sciences and business studies.
8. Southeastern University ($77,013)
Founded in 1935, Southeastern is a private liberal arts college based in Lakeland, Florida.
The most popular majors at Southeastern University, which reportedly has a graduation rate of 38 percent, include theology and religious vocations, business, management, and marketing.
7. Liberty University ($79,840)
Liberty University is a private evangelical Christian college based in Lynchburg, Virginia, founded in 1971.
It offers more than 600 degrees at the bachelor's, master's, or doctoral level.
6. Mercy College ($76,002)
Mercy College is a private, non-sectarian, non-profit, co-educational research college with its main campus alongside the Hudson River in Dobbs Ferry, New York.
Mercy College offers an acceptance rate of 82 percent and offers more than 90 undergraduate and graduate degree and certificate programs.
5. Post University ($75,885)
Post University is a private college in Waterbury, Connecticut, but the majority of students now exclusively attend the university online.
Offering an acceptance rate of 97 percent, Post University now offers more than 25 undergraduate and graduate programs.
4. Southern New Hampshire University ($74,992)
Southern New Hampshire University is a private college based between Manchester and Hooksett, in the East Coast state of New Hampshire.
Among the more than 200 courses available at the university are degrees in hospitality, health, education and business.
3. Full Sail University ($74,622)
Full Sail University is a private for-profit university that relocated to Winter Park, Florida, in 1980.
The college, which began offering online degrees in 2007, offers degree programs with a focus on the entertainment, media, arts and tech industries.
Full Sail University told Newsweek it makes large investments in its physical and technological infrastructures to help students to create "individually tailored" learning, and that it takes less time to complete its programs than other institutions.
"As is the case with many career paths, our graduates often gain employment at the entry-level. Their careers in media arts, entertainment, and emerging technology often require them to pay their dues, and therefore it takes them longer to reach higher wage thresholds," a spokesperson said.
2. Johnson & Wales University-Providence ($73,301)
Johnson & Wales University is a private university founded in 1914 with its primary campus in Providence, Rhode Island.
The college that currently has approximately 13,000 graduates, is recognised for its program in the culinary arts and is one of the largest foodservice educators in the world.
1. Monroe College ($67,346)
Monroe College is a New York-based private college and graduate school founded in 1933.
The most popular majors at this college, which is ranked in the 2021 edition of Best Colleges is Regional Universities North, include business police and criminal science and criminal justice and law enforcement administration.
Newsweek has sought comment from each of the institutions named in this article.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.
