Best & Worst Cities for College Outcomes
City rollups of every Title-IV institution that sits inside the place polygon. Each city's value is the median across its in-city institutions, weighted equally per institution. College-town single-institution cities effectively read out that institution's value — those rows are kept intentionally so they stay visible in the ranking. Spans 52 ingested states (2445 cities total).
Top 10 Highest Median earnings · 10 years after entry (USD)What this meansMedian annual earnings of federally aided students 10 years after first enrolling, computed from Treasury IRS tax records. The cohort includes non-completers and out-of-state movers — selection effects (who enrolls, who completes, what fields they enter) drive most of the variation across institutions.
Cities whose Title-IV institutions report the highest median 10-year-after-entry earnings — Treasury cohorts, all federally aided enrollees.
| # | City | State | Institutions | Median earnings · 10 years after entry |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Needham | MA | 1 | $129.5k |
| 2 | Stanford | CA | 1 | $124.1k |
| 3 | Princeton | NJ | 2 | $110.1k |
| 4 | Hoboken | NJ | 1 | $108.8k |
| 5 | Wellesley | MA | 2 | $104.4k |
| 6 | Chestnut Hill | MA | 1 | $103.9k |
| 7 | Cambridge | MA | 4 | $101.8k |
| 8 | Villanova | PA | 1 | $100.4k |
| 9 | Vallejo | CA | 3 | $99.8k |
| 10 | Yonkers | NY | 3 | $99.5k |
Top 10 Lowest Median earnings · 10 years after entry (USD)What this meansMedian annual earnings of federally aided students 10 years after first enrolling, computed from Treasury IRS tax records. The cohort includes non-completers and out-of-state movers — selection effects (who enrolls, who completes, what fields they enter) drive most of the variation across institutions.
Cities whose Title-IV institutions report the lowest median 10-year-after-entry earnings.
| # | City | State | Institutions | Median earnings · 10 years after entry |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Westminster | CA | 1 | $12.6k |
| 2 | Taylor | MI | 1 | $13.3k |
| 3 | West Springfield | MA | 1 | $14.2k |
| 4 | Knox | IN | 1 | $14.2k |
| 5 | Poplar | MT | 1 | $14.7k |
| 6 | Grand Blanc | MI | 1 | $16.3k |
| 7 | Cadillac | MI | 1 | $16.5k |
| 8 | Plantation | FL | 1 | $16.7k |
| 9 | Port Huron | MI | 3 | $16.7k |
| 10 | San Lorenzo | PR | 1 | $16.8k |
Top 10 Highest Completion rate · 150% of expected time (share of cohort)What this meansShare of first-time, full-time freshmen who complete their program within 150% of expected time (six years for a four-year degree, three years for a two-year degree). Reported by IPEDS Graduation Rate survey. Tiny cohorts skew toward 100% — top tables apply a 1,000-undergrad floor where editorially relevant.
Cities with the highest median 150%-time completion rate across in-city Title-IV institutions.
| # | City | State | Institutions | Completion rate · 150% of expected time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Palmer | AK | 1 | 100.0% |
| 2 | Beaumont | CA | 1 | 100.0% |
| 3 | Canoga Park | CA | 1 | 100.0% |
| 4 | Reseda | CA | 1 | 100.0% |
| 5 | Riverbank | CA | 1 | 100.0% |
| 6 | South El Monte | CA | 1 | 100.0% |
| 7 | Tarzana | CA | 1 | 100.0% |
| 8 | Woodside | DE | 1 | 100.0% |
| 9 | HOMESTEAD | FL | 1 | 100.0% |
| 10 | Anamosa | IA | 1 | 100.0% |
Top 10 Lowest Completion rate · 150% of expected time (share of cohort)What this meansShare of first-time, full-time freshmen who complete their program within 150% of expected time (six years for a four-year degree, three years for a two-year degree). Reported by IPEDS Graduation Rate survey. Tiny cohorts skew toward 100% — top tables apply a 1,000-undergrad floor where editorially relevant.
Cities with the lowest median 150%-time completion rate across in-city Title-IV institutions.
| # | City | State | Institutions | Completion rate · 150% of expected time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Midfield | AL | 1 | 0.0% |
| 2 | Cass Lake | MN | 1 | 0.0% |
| 3 | West New York | NJ | 1 | 0.0% |
| 4 | Howell | NJ | 2 | 4.3% |
| 5 | Tsaile | AZ | 1 | 5.5% |
| 6 | N Little Rock | AR | 1 | 6.7% |
| 7 | Opelousas | LA | 1 | 7.1% |
| 8 | Dobson | NC | 1 | 7.7% |
| 9 | Browning | MT | 1 | 7.7% |
| 10 | Holbrook | AZ | 1 | 8.3% |