Money Moves

Colleges with the best bang for your buck

6.  Princeton University

best bang for buck colleges 06 Princeton University
6
  • 20-year return on investment: $966,000
  • Total 4-year cost: $224,000

Princeton offers the best bang for your buck among the Ivy League schools, according to Payscale.

It comes with a high sticker price, but about 60% of undergrads get financial aid. Graduates leave with less student debt than any other school in the top 10 list. Their average loan amount is $14,100, according to the report.

First published April 7, 2016: 7:15 AM ET
Source: PayScale
Based on survey data, PayScale calculated the total median pay for a school's undergraduate alumnus over a 20-year career and compared it to that of a high school graduate who worked for 24 years. It took the difference in pay and subtracted the cost of attending school to determine the return on investment in 2015 dollars. The cost of attendance included tuition, room and board, and books -- and adjusted to account for the average grant awarded to students. Alumni who went on to graduate school were excluded from the data.

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