College ROI

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Saint Mary's College of California

Moraga, CA 1,947 Undergrads 75.8% Grad Rate
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Total Cost
$77,659
Sticker Price
Avg Net Price
$30,378
After Aid
Median Earnings
$74,325
4yr Post-Grad

Vs. Peer Institutions

Net Price$30,378
Peer Midpoint: $20,081
Earnings (4yr Post-Grad)Completers only after graduation
$74,325
Peer Midpoint: $60,428
Earnings (10yr Post-Enroll)All enrolled after enrollment
$78,812
Peer Midpoint: $53,763
Graduation Rate75.8%
Peer Midpoint: 58.9%
Average Starting Age20.8
Socio-Economic Diversity
Pell Grant Recipients25.5%
Enrollment Status
Full-Time94.9%
Economic Outcomes
Earn More than HS79.1%

Admissions Profile

Acceptance
86.5%
SAT Avg
-
SAT Reading
25th: --75th: -
SAT Math
25th: --75th: -
ACT Composite
25th: --75th: -

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
+$647k
+$180k
+$163k
Median Cost$30k/yr
+$538k
+$71k
+$53k
Full Cost$78k/yr
+$367k
-$99k
-$117k

ROI Efficiency Metrics

Break-Even Age
Return on Inv. %
Zero Cost (Scholarship)$0
29
∞
Median Cost$30k/yr
44
49%
Full Cost$78k/yr
Never
-42%
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 Return12%

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-61%
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
$25,000
Earnings (4yr)
$107,570
Natl Median: $76,194
Lifetime Value Added
+$307k
Anthropology
BachCIP: 4502
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $46,676
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Applied Mathematics
BachCIP: 2703
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $91,532
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Archeology
BachCIP: 4503
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $41,748
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Area Studies
BachCIP: 0501
Median Debt
-
Earnings (2yr)
$42,682
Natl Median: $56,625
Lifetime Value Added
-$187k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $65,466
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Biology, General
BachCIP: 2601
Median Debt
$25,000
Earnings (5yr)
$65,439
Natl Median: $57,214
Lifetime Value Added
-$25k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $68,257
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$23,250
Earnings (4yr)
$80,262
Natl Median: $68,407
Lifetime Value Added
+$99k
Chemistry
BachCIP: 4005
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $65,120
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$19,500
Earnings (4yr)
$64,456
Natl Median: $56,359
Lifetime Value Added
-$23k
Dance
BachCIP: 5003
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $39,980
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$27,000
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $39,775
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Economics
BachCIP: 4506
Median Debt
-
Earnings (5yr)
$97,033
Natl Median: $82,686
Lifetime Value Added
+$212k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $89,359
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$23,250
Earnings (4yr)
$57,651
Natl Median: $48,590
Lifetime Value Added
-$77k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $51,710
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $83,343
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $41,367
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $50,580
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (5yr)
$73,418
Natl Median: $68,245
Lifetime Value Added
+$35k
History
BachCIP: 5401
Median Debt
$24,000
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $50,680
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $66,596
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$27,000
Earnings (4yr)
$68,501
Natl Median: $53,072
Lifetime Value Added
+$9k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $88,839
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Music
BachCIP: 5009
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $42,892
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $55,012
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Physics
BachCIP: 4008
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $76,786
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$25,000
Earnings (4yr)
$62,651
Natl Median: $63,293
Lifetime Value Added
-$37k
Psychology, General
BachCIP: 4201
Median Debt
$25,000
Earnings (4yr)
$70,123
Natl Median: $50,706
Lifetime Value Added
+$21k
Psychology, Other
BachCIP: 4299
Median Debt
$22,686
Earnings (5yr)
$65,376
Natl Median: $50,748
Lifetime Value Added
-$25k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $55,695
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $55,000
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Sociology
BachCIP: 4511
Median Debt
-
Earnings (5yr)
$70,004
Natl Median: $52,657
Lifetime Value Added
+$10k
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness
BachCIP: 3105
Median Debt
$21,625
Earnings (4yr)
$66,265
Natl Median: $54,562
Lifetime Value Added
-$9k

Master's Degrees

Median Debt
$41,000
Earnings (4yr)
$107,437
Natl Median: $95,833
Lifetime Value Added
+$249k
Median Debt
$50,940
Earnings (4yr)
$161,500
Natl Median: $103,485
Lifetime Value Added
+$718k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $125,988
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $65,184
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Dance
MastCIP: 5003
Median Debt
$41,000
Earnings (4yr)
$89,283
Natl Median: $55,404
Lifetime Value Added
+$91k
Education, General
MastCIP: 1301
Median Debt
-
Earnings (2yr)
$52,107
Natl Median: $65,824
Lifetime Value Added
-$222k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$90,166
Natl Median: $71,685
Lifetime Value Added
+$98k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
$108,918
Natl Median: $65,716
Lifetime Value Added
+$262k
Median Debt
-
Earnings (5yr)
$25,711
Natl Median: $55,035
Lifetime Value Added
-$509k
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness
MastCIP: 3105
Median Debt
$35,233
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $62,033
Lifetime Value Added
N/A
Median Debt
$66,300
Earnings (4yr)
$81,166
Natl Median: $60,111
Lifetime Value Added
+$19k
Median Debt
$41,667
Earnings (4yr)
$73,293
Natl Median: $59,916
Lifetime Value Added
-$50k

Graduate Certificates

Median Debt
-
Earnings (4yr)
-
Natl Median: $63,709
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.