Newsflash: college is expensive, even at public universities. But there are some state schools that pay off more than others.
A new ranking released Wednesday from PayScale shows which colleges and universities -- public, private, religious and secular -- that have the best return on investment.
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The Huffington Post sorted through the state schools to find out which taxpayer supported colleges are paying off the most for graduates.
Below is a ranking of the public colleges with the highest return on investment. The first number listed below each school photo is the weighted total cost for a graduate based on in-state tuition rates, and the second number is the 20-year net return on investment.
1
Colorado School of Mines
WikiMedia:
$114,200 -- $783,400
2
Georgia Institute of Technology
WikiMedia:
$92,250 -- $755,600
3
Massachusetts Maritime Academy
WikiMedia:
$96,560 -- $702,100
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4
South Dakota School of Mines & Technology
Facebook: South Dakota School of Mines & Technology
$90,330 -- $664,400
5
Missouri University of Science and Technology (S&T)
$98,170 -- $661,000
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7
California Polytechnic State University (CalPoly) - San Luis Obispo
$103,600 -- $611,700
8
New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT)
Wikimedia Commons
$137,700 -- $588,500
9
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology (New Mexico Tech)
$76,410 -- $588,400
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10
Texas A&M University - Main Campus
AP
$91,040 -- $566,700
11
Virginia Tech
Getty Images
$97,710 -- $560,900