“On average, more than 3,000 borrowers default on their federal student loans every day,” and “44 million Americans have a total of 1.4 trillion in student loan debt,” according to a recent CNBC report. Many of these borrowers are projected to be making payments on their loans well into their 40s.
24/7 Wall Street recently published a list U.S. colleges and universities with the lowest return on investment. Many of the “best” liberal arts colleges also fall into this category.
Here their list of the “top 25 colleges that pay off the least”:
Data from left to right columns:
- The higher the ranking is, the less payoff is
- School Name
- Cost for a Four-year degree: data source is the U.S. Department of Education
- Median Salary for graduates 10 years after enrolling and receiving financial aid.
Source of student loan debt: 24/7 Wall Street
| School | Cost | Salary | Debt | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bennington College (VT) | $111,604 | $24,600 | $19,500 |
| 2 | College of the Atlantic | $69,853 | $26,400 | $15,334 |
| 3 | St. John's College (NM) | $96,508 | $27,600 | $19,500 |
| 4 | Thomas Aquinas College | $81,840 | $30,200 | $16,188 |
| 5 | Earlham College | $75,676 | $33,400 | $18,500 |
| 6 | St. John's College (MD) | $117,824 | $35,200 | $21,000 |
| 7 | Reed College | $83,520 | $35,200 | $14,346 |
| 8 | Berea College | $12,268 | $33,400 | $5,428 |
| 9 | Sarah Lawrence College | $133,020 | $37,000 | $13,126 |
| 10 | Beloit College | $94,388 | $37,900 | $23,250 |
| 11 | Bard College | $116,608 | $38,700 | $20,000 |
| 12 | Colorado College | $109,736 | $39,700 | $18,000 |
| 13 | Agnes Scott College | $74,068 | $38,800 | $22,750 |
| 14 | SUNY Buffalo State | $47,596 | $38,100 | $15,000 |
| 15 | Oberlin College | $117,944 | $40,300 | $24,000 |
| 16 | Transylvania University | $87,252 | $39,700 | $23,320 |
| 17 | Lewis & Clark College | $134,380 | $41,100 | $19,500 |
| 18 | Hendrix College | $94,252 | $40,500 | $18,225 |
| 19 | Lawrence University | $100,652 | $41,100 | $26,133 |
| 20 | Sewanee-the Univ. of the South | $82,400 | $40,600 | $15,417 |
| 21 | Cornell College (IA) | $82,928 | $40,900 | $26,332 |
| 22 | Luther College (IA) | $97,284 | $41,800 | $26,968 |
| 23 | Knox College | $84,004 | $41,700 | $23,080 |
| 24 | Ohio Wesleyan University | $111,292 | $42,700 | $22,191 |
| 25 | Wheaton College | $95,600 | $42,500 | $21,500 |
To read the original full list of the 50 top-ranked schools that pay off the least please click HERE.
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