College ranking

Best small colleges by ROI

College Scorecard + IPEDS Last updated: May 2026

Executive Summary

Under 3,000 undergraduates (Scorecard size), bachelor’s-predominant, sorted by 10-year ROI. California Institute of Technology leads this list at $595,878 (10 Yr. ROI).

Leaders: top 3

California Institute of Technology

10 Yr. ROI $595,878

CA · Private nonprofit

Harvey Mudd College

10 Yr. ROI $490,267

CA · Private nonprofit

Franklin W Olin College of Engineering

10 Yr. ROI $487,586

MA · Private nonprofit

Top 100 Best small colleges by ROI

Rank	Institution	State	Control	Enrollment	10 Yr. ROI	Also see
1	California Institute of Technology	CA	Private nonprofit	987	$595,878	Grad 94.4% · Net $16,075
2	Harvey Mudd College	CA	Private nonprofit	921	$490,267	Grad 91.9% · Net $35,924
3	Franklin W Olin College of Engineering	MA	Private nonprofit	377	$487,586	Grad 96.4% · Net $25,171
4	University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis	MO	Private nonprofit	337	$482,012	Grad 61.7% · Net $31,817
5	Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences	NY	Private nonprofit	481	$467,200	Grad 67.5% · Net $29,882
6	United States Merchant Marine Academy	NY	Public	962	$443,240	Grad 82.4% · Net $6,174
7	Cal Poly Maritime Academy	CA	Public	804	$366,819	Grad 59.7% · Net $20,555
8	Claremont McKenna College	CA	Private nonprofit	1,388	$356,148	Grad 91.4% · Net $28,849
9	Massachusetts Maritime Academy	MA	Public	1,395	$336,008	Grad 74.1% · Net $21,582
10	West Coast University-Miami	FL	Private for-profit	961	$331,776	Grad 33.3% · Net $32,539
11	Maine Maritime Academy	ME	Public	942	$327,736	Grad 58.2% · Net $23,414
12	SUNY Maritime College	NY	Public	1,285	$326,120	Grad 64.4% · Net $22,367
13	Babson College	MA	Private nonprofit	2,728	$325,382	Grad 93.1% · Net $40,514
14	Washington and Lee University	VA	Private nonprofit	1,881	$317,628	Grad 93.9% · Net $23,781
15	Williams College	MA	Private nonprofit	2,076	$310,212	Grad 93.6% · Net $17,716
16	Chamberlain University-Nevada	NV	Private for-profit	652	$306,764	Grad 20.0% · Net $27,073
17	Mount Carmel College of Nursing	OH	Private nonprofit	532	$306,416	Grad 53.8% · Net $10,420
18	Bowdoin College	ME	Private nonprofit	1,873	$303,690	Grad 95.3% · Net $14,398
19	Chamberlain University-Michigan	MI	Private for-profit	629	$301,904	Grad 100.0% · Net $28,045
20	Capitol Technology University	MD	Private nonprofit	315	$297,914	Grad 42.7% · Net $22,102
21	Milwaukee School of Engineering	WI	Private nonprofit	2,654	$296,739	Grad 67.1% · Net $22,453
22	Northeastern University Oakland	CA	Private nonprofit	464	$296,148	Grad — · Net $25,181
23	Illinois Institute of Technology	IL	Private nonprofit	2,833	$292,532	Grad 75.2% · Net $18,425
24	University of Connecticut-Waterbury Campus	CT	Public	733	$289,614	Grad 52.7% · Net $10,875
25	Chamberlain University-Missouri	MO	Private for-profit	284	$288,549	Grad 100.0% · Net $30,716
26	Chamberlain University-Louisiana	LA	Private for-profit	622	$288,174	Grad — · Net $30,791
27	Chamberlain University-Florida	FL	Private for-profit	821	$285,784	Grad 33.3% · Net $31,269
28	Chamberlain University-Ohio	OH	Private for-profit	257	$284,409	Grad 28.6% · Net $31,544
29	Virginia Military Institute	VA	Public	1,527	$282,064	Grad 76.2% · Net $17,113
30	Chamberlain University-Texas	TX	Private for-profit	2,270	$281,084	Grad 25.0% · Net $32,209
31	Chamberlain University-Georgia	GA	Private for-profit	1,940	$276,189	Grad 50.0% · Net $33,188
32	Chamberlain University-Virginia	VA	Private for-profit	557	$276,134	Grad 100.0% · Net $33,199
33	University of Connecticut-Avery Point	CT	Public	454	$274,954	Grad 61.6% · Net $13,807
34	Davidson College	NC	Private nonprofit	1,867	$272,444	Grad 91.1% · Net $17,379
35	Oregon Institute of Technology	OR	Public	2,892	$272,295	Grad 53.8% · Net $15,706
36	Baptist Health Sciences University	TN	Private nonprofit	770	$268,792	Grad 39.8% · Net $11,212
37	New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology	NM	Public	995	$268,028	Grad 57.0% · Net $9,873
38	Amherst College	MA	Private nonprofit	1,911	$266,312	Grad 93.9% · Net $23,367
39	Texas A&M University-Central Texas	TX	Public	1,750	$262,564	Grad — · Net $1,300
40	University of Detroit Mercy	MI	Private nonprofit	2,438	$262,550	Grad 67.2% · Net $15,232
41	University of Connecticut-Hartford Campus	CT	Public	1,525	$261,974	Grad 65.0% · Net $16,403
42	Colby College	ME	Private nonprofit	2,407	$260,943	Grad 88.8% · Net $17,180
43	University of Connecticut-Stamford	CT	Public	2,432	$259,998	Grad 56.5% · Net $16,798
44	Kettering University	MI	Private nonprofit	1,205	$259,827	Grad 70.8% · Net $34,660
45	Chamberlain University-California	CA	Private for-profit	751	$259,334	Grad — · Net $36,559
46	Clarkson University	NY	Private nonprofit	2,196	$256,028	Grad 74.9% · Net $30,305
47	Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology	IN	Private nonprofit	2,309	$255,431	Grad 78.2% · Net $42,513
48	Lafayette College	PA	Private nonprofit	2,757	$254,775	Grad 87.6% · Net $34,433
49	Regis University	CO	Private nonprofit	2,627	$252,882	Grad 61.0% · Net $18,397
50	Chamberlain University-New Jersey	NJ	Private for-profit	1,226	$252,209	Grad 33.3% · Net $37,984
51	Ner Israel Rabbinical College	MD	Private nonprofit	280	$250,635	Grad 23.5% · Net $13,572
52	Chamberlain University-North Carolina	NC	Private for-profit	202	$249,949	Grad — · Net $38,436
53	University of Minnesota-Rochester	MN	Public	568	$248,740	Grad 57.4% · Net $13,744
54	Pomona College	CA	Private nonprofit	1,666	$248,288	Grad 93.2% · Net $19,285
55	University of New Hampshire at Manchester	NH	Public	443	$247,095	Grad 50.0% · Net $9,992
56	Manhattan University	NY	Private nonprofit	2,744	$246,678	Grad 63.7% · Net $27,256
57	West Coast University-Ontario	CA	Private for-profit	2,671	$246,521	Grad 38.9% · Net $49,590
58	Neumont College of Computer Science	UT	Private for-profit	453	$245,365	Grad 62.7% · Net $35,205
59	Wellesley College	MA	Private nonprofit	2,300	$243,098	Grad 91.5% · Net $25,496
60	University of Maine at Fort Kent	ME	Public	599	$242,829	Grad 39.4% · Net $7,482
61	University of New Hampshire College of Professional Studies Online	NH	Public	1,157	$242,735	Grad 29.5% · Net $10,864
62	Chamberlain University-Arizona	AZ	Private for-profit	693	$241,649	Grad 50.0% · Net $40,096
63	University of St Francis	IL	Private nonprofit	1,223	$241,399	Grad 66.8% · Net $13,006
64	The Christ College of Nursing and Health Sciences	OH	Private nonprofit	713	$241,240	Grad 55.7% · Net $18,378
65	Linfield University	OR	Private nonprofit	1,621	$238,342	Grad 70.5% · Net $26,536
66	University of Portland	OR	Private nonprofit	2,957	$237,778	Grad 79.8% · Net $28,210
67	SUNY Polytechnic Institute	NY	Public	1,849	$237,624	Grad 55.1% · Net $14,164
68	Ohio University-Eastern Campus	OH	Public	298	$237,221	Grad 20.6% · Net $3,925
69	Trinity College	CT	Private nonprofit	2,146	$235,264	Grad 83.8% · Net $34,832
70	Holy Family University	PA	Private nonprofit	2,464	$235,033	Grad 60.9% · Net $13,143
71	Yeshiva Toras Chaim	NJ	Private nonprofit	227	$235,012	Grad 31.0% · Net $5,356
72	Swarthmore College	PA	Private nonprofit	1,613	$234,737	Grad 92.3% · Net $23,149
73	The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art	NY	Private nonprofit	842	$234,564	Grad 81.1% · Net $13,269
74	South Dakota School of Mines and Technology	SD	Public	2,071	$234,359	Grad 52.9% · Net $20,183
75	Gnomon	CA	Private for-profit	294	$232,504	Grad 100.0% · Net $51,949
76	Ohio Northern University	OH	Private nonprofit	2,489	$231,953	Grad 75.5% · Net $24,478
77	Citadel Military College of South Carolina	SC	Public	2,705	$230,098	Grad 75.0% · Net $20,723
78	West Coast University-Texas	TX	Private for-profit	2,673	$229,371	Grad 31.2% · Net $53,020
79	Ohio University-Lancaster Campus	OH	Public	691	$228,596	Grad 14.4% · Net $5,650
80	Mount Saint Mary's University	CA	Private nonprofit	1,719	$228,538	Grad 53.2% · Net $21,413
81	Saint Mary's University of Minnesota	MN	Private nonprofit	1,073	$227,996	Grad 66.0% · Net $11,704
82	University of Pittsburgh-Bradford	PA	Public	995	$227,444	Grad 47.6% · Net $15,350
83	Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Fayette- Eberly	PA	Public	402	$226,342	Grad 38.6% · Net $14,596
84	Mercy College of Ohio	OH	Private nonprofit	939	$225,054	Grad 55.8% · Net $17,989
85	Clarkson College	NE	Private nonprofit	622	$224,764	Grad 46.7% · Net $19,241
86	Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Greater Allegheny	PA	Public	349	$221,718	Grad 19.0% · Net $15,521
87	Notre Dame of Maryland University	MD	Private nonprofit	709	$218,838	Grad 50.0% · Net $19,169
88	Dominican University	IL	Private nonprofit	2,561	$218,440	Grad 55.3% · Net $11,745
89	Charter Oak State College	CT	Public	1,821	$218,205	Grad 66.7% · Net $15,815
90	Union College	NY	Private nonprofit	2,046	$217,906	Grad 80.4% · Net $34,561
91	Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Wilkes-Barre	PA	Public	313	$217,082	Grad 22.7% · Net $16,448
92	D'Youville University	NY	Private nonprofit	1,258	$217,024	Grad 67.5% · Net $20,433
93	Dominican University of California	CA	Private nonprofit	1,114	$216,940	Grad 78.0% · Net $35,333
94	University of Minnesota-Crookston	MN	Public	1,729	$215,674	Grad 49.8% · Net $12,212
95	Ohio State University-Lima Campus	OH	Public	621	$215,442	Grad 22.7% · Net $12,940
96	University of Illinois Springfield	IL	Public	2,263	$215,438	Grad 53.2% · Net $9,833
97	Norwich University	VT	Private nonprofit	2,428	$214,674	Grad 60.2% · Net $22,257
98	Kettering College	OH	Private nonprofit	549	$214,530	Grad 65.1% · Net $21,650
99	University of Pittsburgh-Greensburg	PA	Public	1,305	$214,468	Grad 39.7% · Net $17,945
100	University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown	PA	Public	1,808	$213,184	Grad 55.8% · Net $18,202

Method notes

Underlying institution file: EDsmart Data processed College Scorecard extract merged to the IPEDS 2024 directory for HBCU and Carnegie fields.
Cohort applied on this page: enrollment floor of 200 undergraduates; sorted highest first on 10 Yr. ROI; 1,011 campuses met every filter and the top 100 are published.
Ties on the ranked metric are broken by enrollment, then institution name, so ranks stay stable between rebuilds.
ROI column matches the processed college_roi_rankings series in this site build; see College Scorecard ROI methodology.
How the 10-year ROI figure is built: median earnings reported 6, 8, and 10 years after entry (years 7 and 9 linearly interpolated) are summed across years 6–10, then average annual net price × typical years enrolled (five for bachelor’s-predominant campuses) is subtracted. It is a nominal-dollar gap—not discounted to present value, and it does not subtract earnings foregone while enrolled or compare against a no-college baseline. Campuses reporting only one of the three earnings years are excluded from these tables.
School profile links use generated slugs; not every campus has a published profile page yet—use the Scorecard site as fallback.

Download

Download CSV Download JSON