Which US university’s students earn the most 10 years after graduation?

The New York Times recently released a list of 

American universities that have high-earning graduates 10 years after graduation . Surprisingly, only two Ivy League schools made the list.　　In addition, the report points out that 

college graduates generally outperform those who fail to complete their education . However, it is not just the college you attend that determines a person’s income; your choice of major and career path also play a key role.　　Next, let’s take a look at which American universities have students with higher salaries after graduation!

　　10. Princeton University

　　• 2025 USNews National Ranking: 1

　　• Median salary 10 years later: $95,689　　Princeton University has been ranked first in the US News undergraduate rankings for many years, and its academic strength and reputation in the world are obvious to all. Princeton has the rigor, restraint, and rationality of a research university, and adheres to the “small but beautiful” education model of a liberal arts college. Its graduates not only have high average salaries, but also produce many wealthy people: according to statistics, 3% of American billionaires graduated from here.

　　9. Georgetown University

　　• 2025 USNews National Ranking: 24

　　• Median salary 10 years later: $96,375　　Georgetown’s main campus is located in Washington, D.C., the political center of the United States, about two miles from the White House, and adjacent to Capitol Hill, the Supreme Court, and the World Bank. With its unique geographical location, the university’s law, public policy, and business administration majors are all world-leading.　　Most of Georgetown University’s graduates enter the workplace after graduation, and their destinations are mainly high-paying fields such as investment banks, consulting firms, and financial companies.

　　8. Stanford University

　　• 2025 USNews National Ranking: 4

　　• Median salary 10 years later: $97,798　　Stanford University created Silicon Valley, and Silicon Valley also created Stanford University. Stanford University has driven the unique economic model of Silicon Valley in California, and has continuously supplied a large number of high-level talents to Silicon Valley and around the world. Therefore, after graduation, students of this university can find jobs in Silicon Valley relatively easily, and they actually have many job opportunities during their time at school. Stanford is also one of the institutions that has trained the most members of the U.S. Congress.

　　7. Stevens Institute of Technology

　　• 2025 USNews National Ranking: 76

　　• Median salary 10 years later: $96,375　　Stevens Institute of Technology is a strong American science and engineering school founded in 1870. Although it is not well-known in China, it has a certain reputation internationally.　　As one of the oldest polytechnic schools in the United States and one of the founding schools of the American Association of Independent Technological Universities, Stevens Institute of Technology emphasizes innovation and entrepreneurship, focusing on engineering, science and management programs. The school has trained many talents with outstanding achievements in the field of science.

　　6. Carnegie Mellon University

　　• 2025 USNews National Ranking: 21

　　• Median salary 10 years later: $99,998　　Carnegie Mellon University is located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and is a world-renowned private research university.　　The school has the first computer school and drama school in the United States. Its art school, business school, engineering school, public administration school, as well as computer, psychology, statistics, applied mathematics, decision science, computational biology, etc. are all among the best in the United States.

　　5. University of Pennsylvania

　　• 2025 USNews National Ranking: 10

　　• Median salary 10 years later: $103,246　　The most famous business school of the University of Pennsylvania is the Wharton School of Business. Located in Philadelphia, the Wharton School of Business is a world-leading business school and has been rated as the “best business school in the world” many times.　　The college is not only cultivating future business elites, but also committed to providing in-depth research for the business community. It is the world’s leading business knowledge innovation institution. In addition, it has cultivated generations of outstanding talents with entrepreneurial spirit and business acumen. Musk graduated from here.

　　4. Bentley University

　　• Median salary 10 years later: $107,974　　Bentley University is located in the Boston area and mainly offers courses in the business field. Its undergraduate business school is ranked in the top 20 in the United States, and its reputation in the Greater Boston area is second only to Harvard Business School and MIT Sloan School of Business. Its accounting major is on par with similar programs at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).　　In 2018, Fortune magazine ranked the school fourth in the United States in “Best Business Schools in the United States”; Princeton Review ranked it first in the United States in “American College Career Services”; and in the 2019 College Factual professional rankings, the business management field ranked first in the United States.

　　3. Harvey Mudd College

　　• 2025 USNews National Liberal Arts Colleges: 12

　　• Median salary 10 years later: $108,988　　As a top liberal arts college, Harvey Mudd College excels in science and engineering and highly respects the elite education of liberal arts colleges. Therefore, one-third of undergraduate courses are in the humanities, the highest proportion among engineering colleges in the United States.　　It is worth mentioning that after graduating from undergraduate school, most students of Harvey Mudd College will go to major universities for further studies, such as Harvard, MIT, Stanford, etc., and the proportion of students admitted to PhD programs is the highest in the United States.

　　2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

　　• 2025 USNews National Ranking: 2

　　• Median salary 10 years later: $111,222　　MIT is known as the “best science and engineering university in the world” and its popular majors are computer science, mechanical engineering, mathematics, physics, and electrical and electronic engineering.　　The school holds several job fairs every year to help students prepare for various industries after graduation. At MIT, wind tunnels, nuclear reactor laboratories, and the oldest aerospace program in the United States allow students to explore discoveries, practical learning, and innovations that will impact the world to the greatest extent possible.

　　1. California Institute of Technology

　　• 2025 USNews National Ranking: 6

　　• Median salary 10 years later: $112,166　　Caltech, as one of the world’s top private research institutions, enjoys a high reputation. Qian Xuesen, the “Father of Chinese Spaceflight” and “Father of Chinese Missiles”, received his doctorate from Caltech in 1939 and taught there for a long time, and participated in the creation of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.　　Among the many popular majors at California Institute of Technology, biology, chemistry and chemical engineering, engineering and applied science, geology and planetary science, anthropology and social sciences, as well as physics, mathematics and astronomy are very popular among students.