College ROI

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James Madison University

Harrisonburg, VA 20,888 Undergrads 81.6% Grad Rate
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Total Cost
$31,735
Sticker Price
Avg Net Price
$23,322
After Aid
Median Earnings
$70,627
4yr Post-Grad

Vs. Peer Institutions

Net Price$23,322
Peer Midpoint: $20,081
Earnings (4yr Post-Grad)Completers only after graduation
$70,627
Peer Midpoint: $60,428
Earnings (10yr Post-Enroll)All enrolled after enrollment
$69,954
Peer Midpoint: $53,763
Graduation Rate81.6%
Peer Midpoint: 58.9%
Average Starting Age20.2
Socio-Economic Diversity
Pell Grant Recipients17.3%
Enrollment Status
Full-Time94.7%
Economic Outcomes
Earn More than HS83.1%

Admissions Profile

Acceptance
71.5%
SAT Avg
1,256
SAT Reading
25th: 60062075th: 680
SAT Math
25th: 57060575th: 660
ACT Composite
25th: 242775th: 29

ROI Sensitivity Analysis
Assuming 4 Years to Graduation

This analysis tests three cost scenarios (Scholarship, Average Net Price, Full Sticker Price) to show how college costs impact your long-term return compared to the average student and a high school graduate.

Lifetime Value Added (NPV)

Institution Lifetime NPV
Vs Median Peer
Vs HS Grad
Zero Cost (Scholarship)$0
+$619k
+$152k
+$134k
Median Cost$23k/yr
+$535k
+$68k
+$50k
Full Cost$32k/yr
+$504k
+$38k
+$20k

ROI Efficiency Metrics

Break-Even Age
Return on Inv. %
Zero Cost (Scholarship)$0
30
∞
Median Cost$23k/yr
44
60%
Full Cost$32k/yr
53
18%
Analysis Assumptions:
  • Starting Salary: Estimated from the 4-year post-graduation median earnings (assuming 2% annual growth from graduation).
  • Comparisons: "Vs Median Peer" compares to the median student nationwide in a similar level program. "Vs HS Grad" compares to a median high school graduate.
  • Break-Even: The age at which the college investment net income exceeds the median high school graduate's lifetime earnings.
  • NPV: Net Present Value of all future earnings minus costs and taxes, discounted at 7.8%.

Social Impact ROINew

Measures the societal return on a donor's investment. Calculated as the incremental pre-tax lifetime earnings vs. HS grad, divided by the tax-adjusted donation cost.

Donor Return128%

Gov. Pell Grant ROINew

Measures the government's return on Pell Grants via increased tax revenue. Calculated as the portion of incremental lifetime taxes (discounted at 5.4%) attributed to the Pell Grant investment.

Taxpayer Return-19%
Important Note: Your ROI with any major will depend on the cost you pay to attend the program, and your starting salary. Both vary significantly across institutions. We encourage you to explore the ROI of a specific program variant by selecting the Program title of the credential level you are interested in. You will then have a more detailed return analysis for programs at specific institutions. We also encourage you to use the ROI calculator, or for more sophisticated analysis, the Guided ROI Interview, with your specific estimates of cost and salary.

Program ROI Analysis

Bachelor's Degrees

Median Debt
$22,500
Earnings (4yr)
$98,767
Natl Median: $76,194
Lifetime Value Added
+$265k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $70,786
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Anthropology
BachCIP: 4502
Median Debt
$20,500
Earnings (4yr)
$60,841
Natl Median: $46,676
Lifetime Value Added
-$26k
Biology, General
BachCIP: 2601
Median Debt
$20,594
Earnings (4yr)
$62,914
Natl Median: $57,214
Lifetime Value Added
-$9k
Biotechnology
BachCIP: 2612
Median Debt
$21,000
Earnings (4yr)
$65,893
Natl Median: $67,097
Lifetime Value Added
+$14k
Median Debt
$19,000
Earnings (4yr)
$85,137
Natl Median: $68,257
Lifetime Value Added
+$161k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (2yr)
$64,493
Natl Median: $77,981
Lifetime Value Added
+$23k
Chemistry
BachCIP: 4005
Median Debt
$23,750
Earnings (4yr)
$74,631
Natl Median: $65,120
Lifetime Value Added
+$81k
Median Debt
$20,500
Earnings (4yr)
$66,436
Natl Median: $56,359
Lifetime Value Added
+$18k
Median Debt
$19,500
Earnings (4yr)
$65,770
Natl Median: $58,928
Lifetime Value Added
+$13k
Median Debt
$19,500
Earnings (4yr)
$104,806
Natl Median: $92,374
Lifetime Value Added
+$311k
Median Debt
$19,000
Earnings (4yr)
$45,225
Natl Median: $39,775
Lifetime Value Added
-$155k
Economics
BachCIP: 4506
Median Debt
$17,000
Earnings (4yr)
$86,681
Natl Median: $82,686
Lifetime Value Added
+$173k
Median Debt
$24,750
Earnings (4yr)
$91,761
Natl Median: $89,359
Lifetime Value Added
+$212k
Median Debt
$21,000
Earnings (4yr)
$57,487
Natl Median: $48,590
Lifetime Value Added
-$53k
Median Debt
$19,500
Earnings (4yr)
$104,926
Natl Median: $83,343
Lifetime Value Added
+$312k
Median Debt
$22,125
Earnings (4yr)
$54,093
Natl Median: $41,367
Lifetime Value Added
-$81k
Median Debt
$16,375
Earnings (4yr)
$59,501
Natl Median: $54,945
Lifetime Value Added
-$37k
Median Debt
$19,500
Earnings (4yr)
$63,768
Natl Median: $57,853
Lifetime Value Added
-$3k
Median Debt
$21,500
Earnings (4yr)
$51,500
Natl Median: $60,190
Lifetime Value Added
-$102k
Median Debt
$19,500
Earnings (4yr)
$77,393
Natl Median: $58,716
Lifetime Value Added
+$102k
History
BachCIP: 5401
Median Debt
$20,018
Earnings (4yr)
$55,782
Natl Median: $50,680
Lifetime Value Added
-$67k
Median Debt
$19,875
Earnings (4yr)
$65,016
Natl Median: $56,726
Lifetime Value Added
+$7k
Median Debt
$19,500
Earnings (4yr)
$113,345
Natl Median: $85,294
Lifetime Value Added
+$376k
Median Debt
$16,250
Earnings (4yr)
$91,141
Natl Median: $73,201
Lifetime Value Added
+$207k
Median Debt
$18,138
Earnings (4yr)
$68,798
Natl Median: $66,596
Lifetime Value Added
+$36k
Median Debt
$25,000
Earnings (4yr)
$61,496
Natl Median: $62,654
Lifetime Value Added
-$21k
Median Debt
$21,000
Earnings (4yr)
$58,026
Natl Median: $53,072
Lifetime Value Added
-$49k
Median Debt
$18,879
Earnings (4yr)
$62,366
Natl Median: $49,984
Lifetime Value Added
-$14k
Marketing
BachCIP: 5214
Median Debt
$19,500
Earnings (4yr)
$89,944
Natl Median: $69,303
Lifetime Value Added
+$198k
Mathematics
BachCIP: 2701
Median Debt
$20,500
Earnings (4yr)
$75,295
Natl Median: $69,562
Lifetime Value Added
+$86k
Median Debt
$20,500
Earnings (4yr)
$67,033
Natl Median: $52,119
Lifetime Value Added
+$23k
Music
BachCIP: 5009
Median Debt
$20,968
Earnings (4yr)
$51,882
Natl Median: $42,892
Lifetime Value Added
-$99k
Median Debt
$21,250
Earnings (4yr)
$59,604
Natl Median: $46,083
Lifetime Value Added
-$36k
Physics
BachCIP: 4008
Median Debt
-
Earnings (5yr)
$93,914
Natl Median: $76,786
Lifetime Value Added
+$214k
Median Debt
$19,286
Earnings (4yr)
$73,326
Natl Median: $63,293
Lifetime Value Added
+$71k
Psychology, General
BachCIP: 4201
Median Debt
$21,500
Earnings (4yr)
$56,212
Natl Median: $50,706
Lifetime Value Added
-$63k
Median Debt
$18,250
Earnings (4yr)
$71,626
Natl Median: $65,093
Lifetime Value Added
+$58k
Median Debt
$19,350
Earnings (4yr)
$87,056
Natl Median: $88,910
Lifetime Value Added
+$176k
Median Debt
$21,891
Earnings (4yr)
$57,179
Natl Median: $48,471
Lifetime Value Added
-$55k
Median Debt
$22,784
Earnings (4yr)
$82,455
Natl Median: $67,452
Lifetime Value Added
+$141k
Social Work
BachCIP: 4407
Median Debt
$17,990
Earnings (4yr)
$52,991
Natl Median: $51,790
Lifetime Value Added
-$90k
Sociology
BachCIP: 4511
Median Debt
$17,946
Earnings (4yr)
$48,774
Natl Median: $52,657
Lifetime Value Added
-$125k
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness
BachCIP: 3105
Median Debt
$19,500
Earnings (4yr)
$63,065
Natl Median: $54,562
Lifetime Value Added
-$8k
Median Debt
$21,500
Earnings (4yr)
$91,034
Natl Median: $88,036
Lifetime Value Added
+$206k

Master's Degrees

Median Debt
$20,500
Earnings (4yr)
$111,224
Natl Median: $95,833
Lifetime Value Added
+$295k
Median Debt
$88,050
Earnings (4yr)
$138,766
Natl Median: $127,347
Lifetime Value Added
+$534k
Biology, General
MastCIP: 2601
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $69,830
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$24,750
Earnings (4yr)
$150,316
Natl Median: $103,485
Lifetime Value Added
+$634k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $65,184
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $71,953
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$29,000
Earnings (4yr)
$69,342
Natl Median: $67,030
Lifetime Value Added
-$71k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $124,201
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Education, General
MastCIP: 1301
Median Debt
$20,409
Earnings (4yr)
$58,739
Natl Median: $65,824
Lifetime Value Added
-$167k
Education, Other
MastCIP: 1399
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$59,635
Natl Median: $65,348
Lifetime Value Added
-$159k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $55,512
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $49,079
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
History
MastCIP: 5401
Median Debt
-
Earnings (2yr)
$27,444
Natl Median: $55,360
Lifetime Value Added
-$462k
Music
MastCIP: 5009
Median Debt
-
Earnings (2yr)
$28,236
Natl Median: $48,285
Lifetime Value Added
-$454k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$86,137
Natl Median: $78,850
Lifetime Value Added
+$76k
Psychology, General
MastCIP: 4201
Median Debt
-
Earnings (2yr)
$48,432
Natl Median: $64,711
Lifetime Value Added
-$246k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$81,363
Natl Median: $81,408
Lifetime Value Added
+$34k
Median Debt
$29,000
Earnings (4yr)
$106,786
Natl Median: $120,193
Lifetime Value Added
+$257k
Median Debt
$46,918
Earnings (4yr)
$76,377
Natl Median: $71,416
Lifetime Value Added
-$10k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $55,035
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $90,640
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$20,250
Earnings (4yr)
$59,379
Natl Median: $64,397
Lifetime Value Added
-$161k
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness
MastCIP: 3105
Median Debt
$18,092
Earnings (4yr)
$58,878
Natl Median: $62,033
Lifetime Value Added
-$166k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$58,228
Natl Median: $60,111
Lifetime Value Added
-$172k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (5yr)
$79,084
Natl Median: $59,916
Lifetime Value Added
+$574
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $63,707
Lifetime Value Added
N/A

Graduate Certificates

Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $94,506
Lifetime Value Added
N/A

Doctoral Degrees

Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $99,878
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (2yr)
$65,238
Natl Median: $88,343
Lifetime Value Added
-$229k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $86,341
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Music
DocCIP: 5009
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $59,592
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $98,707
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $138,131
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $103,410
Lifetime Value Added
N/A

Note: Lifetime Value Added is the Net Present Value (NPV) of estimated career earnings relative to a median high school graduate (for undergraduate programs) or a median bachelor's degree holder (for graduate programs), accounting for this institution's average cost and taxes. Computed over a career to retirement age.

For graduate programs (Master's, Doctoral, etc.), the calculation assumes a starting age of 22 (after undergraduate completion) and does not include the sunk costs of prior degrees. It represents the value added of the graduate decision moving forward. Note that the institution's average undergraduate net price is used as a proxy for annual cost, which may differ from actual graduate tuition. These Lifetime Value Added results for graduate degrees should not be compared with those for Undergraduate Certificates, Associates or Bachelors.

Completers Only: Federal median earnings data strictly reflects outcomes for students who successfully graduated. Students who do not complete their degree typically earn significantly less and face higher risks of debt default.