Public colleges with the best bang for your buck

collage roi new jersey institute of technology

20-year return on investment : $735,000
Annualized return: 13.3%
Total 4-year cost of attendance: $122,200

This land-grant engineering school is one of the most expensive public colleges in the country, according to rankings by the U.S. Department of Education.

Still, the investment seems to be paying off for the school's graduates, who go on to make much more than peers who did not attend college.

When broken down by career, returns are highest for students who are working in computer and math occupations, who earn a return of $835,000 over 20 years, according to PayScale.

First published March 5, 2015: 1:50 PM ET

Source: PayScale
Based on employee survey data, PayScale calculated total median pay for a school's undergraduate alumni over a 20-year period and compared it to the median pay for a high school graduate over 24 years. The return on investment (ROI) in 2014 dollars was determined by taking the difference between those median pay figures and subtracting the in-state cost of attending the school in 2014 -- including tuition, room and board, and other costs -- and adjusting for scholarships and grants. The annualized ROI is calculated by dividing the earnings differential by the total cost and represents the percent of expected ROI received each year after graduation. Unlike in previous PayScale reports, the earnings differentials in this report do not take into account graduation rates. Alumni who attended graduate school or other higher education were excluded.

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