Massachusetts Higher Education Outcome Report

• Institutions

  97

  305,809 students enrolled

• Graduates / Year

  ~48,386

  Estimated annual completers

• Median Earnings

  92nd pct

  $57,346

  4th of 50 states

• Mobility Score

  59th pct

  1.8%

  19th of 46 states

• Talent Retention

  94th pct

  77%

  First-year retention rate

• Value Ratio

  16th pct

  2.3x

  Earnings per net-price dollar

1. 1

   Massachusetts graduates earn a median of $57,346 a decade after entry, 17% above the national state average, ranking 4th of 50 states.

2. 2

   Upward mobility sits mid-pack: the state's institutions move bottom-quintile students into the top quintile at a 1.8% rate, in the 59th percentile nationally.

3. 3

   Degree production is led by Business and Healthcare, which together account for 34% of graduates. That diversified mix sets what the state's labor pipeline can supply.

4. 4

   Engineering is the standout sector: graduates earn $88,804, +72.2% versus the national median. That premium points to a real wage advantage rather than sheer volume.

5. 5

   On value, Massachusetts returns 2.3x earnings per dollar of net price, below average cost-to-outcome efficiency in the country.

6. 6

   The state's strongest mobility engine is Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which moves bottom-quintile students into the top quintile at a 3.4% rate, the highest in Massachusetts.

• Earnings vs National

  ▲ +38.2%

  Median graduate earnings in Massachusetts are above the national average by 38%.

• Cost vs National

  ▼ +32.1%

  Net price in Massachusetts is higher than the national average by 32%.

• Mobility Rate

  ▲ +0.02pp

  Upward mobility rate is 0 percentage points above the national average.

• Completion Rate

  ▲ +7.6pp

  Massachusetts's graduation rate is 7.6 percentage points above the national average.

• Best Value

  ▲ 19.3x

  Top value school: Middlesex Community College ($50,651 earnings vs $2,624 net price).

• Top Mobility School

  ▲ 3.4%

  Highest mobility rate: Massachusetts Institute of Technology at 3.4%.

Business (19% of graduates) and Healthcare (15% of graduates) dominate Massachusetts's higher education output. Graduates in the top field earn a weighted average of $69,783.

• Business

  19%

  $69,783 avg

• Healthcare

  15%

  $63,795 avg

• Social Sciences

  14%

  $69,703 avg

• Technology

  11%

  $73,626 avg

• Sciences

  9%

  $72,039 avg

Massachusetts's highest-ROI degree cluster is Trades (Mechanic & Repair Tech), where graduates average $45,592 against a net cost of $7,131, a 6.4x return. That's -11.6% vs the national median. At the other end, Education produces $55,817 at a 2.5x return, less than half what the top cluster delivers.

• Mechanic & Repair Tech

  6.4x
  $45,592 earnings · $7,131 net -11.6% vs natl

• Culinary & Personal Services

  4.9x
  $46,961 earnings · $9,665 net -8.9% vs natl

• Transportation

  3.9x
  $61,750 earnings · $15,655 net +19.7% vs natl

• Legal Studies

  3.6x
  $57,322 earnings · $16,058 net +11.1% vs natl

• Engineering

  3.3x
  $68,228 earnings · $20,444 net +32.3% vs natl

• Precision Production

  3.3x
  $42,166 earnings · $12,951 net -18.2% vs natl

Three lenses on Massachusetts's talent pipeline: which fields produce the most graduates, which command the highest earnings, and where high-pay demand outruns local supply.

Massachusetts's colleges post an average mobility rate of 1.8%, which puts the state in the 59th percentile nationally. 8% of students arrive from bottom-quintile households. Cross-class social connectedness averages 1.63, a proxy for the networks that help graduates convert a degree into mobility.

Massachusetts's Engineering programs produce graduates earning $88,804, +72.2% relative to the national median.

• Business

  19% of enrollment
  $60,522 +17.3% vs natl

  59 schools

• Healthcare

  15% of enrollment
  $58,402 +13.2% vs natl

  50 schools

• Social Sciences

  14% of enrollment
  $64,902 +25.8% vs natl

  48 schools

• Technology

  11% of enrollment
  $68,683 +33.2% vs natl

  41 schools

• Sciences

  9% of enrollment
  $74,076 +43.6% vs natl

  34 schools

• Engineering

  7% of enrollment
  $88,804 +72.2% vs natl

  13 schools

Massachusetts's higher education system includes 9 research-oriented, 22 specialized, 8 access-oriented, 58 regional institutions. Each group plays a different role in the state's outcomes.

• 🔬

  9

  Research Universities

• 🏛️

  58

  Regional Universities

• 🚀

  8

  Access-Oriented Institutions

• 🎯

  22

  Specialized Institutions

22% of Massachusetts's colleges charge under $15K net. Graduates of those schools average $45,197 at 10 years. At the premium end, 8 schools charge over $40K, with graduates averaging $74,378.

• NET PRICE UNDER $15K

  18

  22% of schools

  Avg earnings: $45,197

• NET PRICE $15K–$25K

  23

  28% of schools

  Avg earnings: $65,061

• NET PRICE $25K–$40K

  33

  40% of schools

  Avg earnings: $69,146

• NET PRICE OVER $40K

  8

  10% of schools

  Avg earnings: $74,378

Schools ranked by median graduate earnings 10 years after enrolling.

1. 01 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA $143,372
2. 02 Franklin W Olin College of Engineering Needham, MA $129,455
3. 03 Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences Boston, MA $125,557
4. 04 Babson College Wellesley, MA $123,938
5. 05 Bentley University Waltham, MA $120,959
6. 06 Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA $103,937
7. 07 Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester, MA $103,470
8. 08 Harvard University Cambridge, MA $101,817

What graduates in Massachusetts earn relative to what they pay for college.

Every figure on this page is derived from public federal data and read within its regional and economic context. Information Gain Policy →