Clemson Offers Great Return on Investment

The College Database said the 30-year return on investment in a Clemson degree is $409,200. 

“This survey merely confirms what our alumni already know: a Clemson degree pays for itself many times over, not only in terms of dollars, but in terms of professional opportunities and career advancement,” said Neil Burton, executive director of the Center for Career and Professional Development at Clemson. “The return on investment is very high, especially for in-state students.”

The website set out to find the post-secondary institutions whose graduates enjoy the largest earnings gap between non-degree holders over a 30-year span. Only colleges deemed public institutions by the Carnegie Classification system have been included. Clemson is the only South Carolina university that made the list.

“Students paying for college want to know they¹re making a solid long-term investment,” said Wes Ricketts, vice president and general manager of The College Database. “We wanted to highlight the institutions with graduates who earn top dollar five, 10 and even 30 years after earning their degree.

“We know graduates from private universities such as Harvard and Yale have great earning potential when they leave school,” said Ricketts. “But which public colleges out there have degrees we can call truly valuable?”

Data for the list came from PayScale, which publishes a new college graduate earnings report each year.