Higher Education Outcome Report · Midwest

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Missouri Higher Education Outcome Report

Updated continuously · 82 degree-granting institutions graded

Missouri's higher education system is a below-average mobility system. Median 10-year earnings sit at $49,800, -3% vs the national median.

healthcare & bioscience
aerospace & defense
logistics

135
INSTITUTIONS: $49,800
MEDIAN EARNINGS: ▼ -3% vs natl; $17,471
AVG NET PRICE: 41 / 53
PUBLIC / PRIVATE

OUTCOME GRADE

C+

38/100 · #40 of 50

Missouri At A Glance

State-Level Intelligence

Institutions

82

200,440 students enrolled
Graduates / Year

~26,146

Estimated annual completers
Median Earnings
34th pct

$45,400

33rd of 50 states
Mobility Score
11th pct

1.2%

41st of 46 states
Talent Retention
58th pct

71%

First-year retention rate
Value Ratio
32nd pct

2.6x

Earnings per net-price dollar

Top Industries Hiring Graduates:

Humanities
Business
Healthcare

Executive Summary

Missouri graduates earn a median of $45,400 a decade after entry, 7% below the national state average, ranking 33rd of 50 states.
Upward mobility sits mid-pack: the state's institutions move bottom-quintile students into the top quintile at a 1.2% rate, in the 11th percentile nationally.
Degree production is led by Humanities and Business, which together account for 36% of graduates. That diversified mix sets what the state's labor pipeline can supply.
Technology is the standout sector: graduates earn $54,727, +6.1% versus the national median. That premium points to a real wage advantage rather than sheer volume.
Humanities shows oversupply pressure: graduate earnings run 19.9% below the national median, suggesting the field produces more graduates than the local market rewards.
On value, Missouri returns 2.6x earnings per dollar of net price, below average cost-to-outcome efficiency in the country.

Key Insights

Earnings vs National

-0.4%

Median graduate earnings in Missouri are below the national average by 0%.
Cost vs National

-2.4%

Net price in Missouri is lower than the national average by 2%.
Mobility Rate

-0.55pp

Upward mobility rate is 0.5 percentage points below the national average.
Completion Rate

+2.1pp

Missouri's graduation rate is 2.1 percentage points above the national average.
Best Value

23.8x

Top value school: Kirksville Area Technical Center ($40,517 earnings vs $1,699 net price).
Top Mobility School

3.9%

Highest mobility rate: Park University at 3.9%.

Education Output Profile

Humanities (19% of graduates) and Business (17% of graduates) dominate Missouri's higher education output. Graduates in the top field earn a weighted average of $39,804.

Humanities

19%

$39,804 avg
Business

17%

$47,229 avg
Healthcare

17%

$59,079 avg
Social Sciences

9%

$50,978 avg
Technology

7%

$54,191 avg

Concentration: diversified HHI: 12

Outcome Performance

Missouri's highest-ROI degree cluster is Trades (Culinary & Personal Services), where graduates average $38,631 against a net cost of $8,224, a 4.7x return. That's -25.1% vs the national median.

Culinary & Personal Services
4.7x

$38,631 earnings $8,224 net -25.1% vs natl
Precision Production
4.3x

$39,259 earnings $9,081 net -23.9% vs natl
Mechanic & Repair Tech
3.9x

$38,760 earnings $10,059 net -24.8% vs natl
Construction Trades
3.8x

$38,304 earnings $9,960 net -25.7% vs natl
Engineering
3.5x

$49,371 earnings $14,275 net -4.3% vs natl
Transportation
3.3x

$48,873 earnings $14,793 net -5.2% vs natl

State Talent Profile

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

Dominant Fields

Humanities 18%
Business & Marketing 17%
Health Professions 17%
Computer Science & IT 7%
Education 6%

Highest-Earning Fields

Engineering $72,389
Health Professions $59,079
Biology & Biomedical $56,163
Computer Science & IT $54,405
Social Sciences $52,249

Opportunity Gaps

High earnings, low local production — fields where demand may outrun Missouri's graduate supply.

Engineering $72,389 4% of grads
Biology & Biomedical $56,163 5% of grads
Social Sciences $52,249 4% of grads

Mobility & Retention

Opportunity Insights

Missouri's colleges post an average mobility rate of 1.2%, which puts the state in the 11th percentile nationally. 9% of students arrive from bottom-quintile households. Cross-class social connectedness averages 1.53, a proxy for the networks that help graduates convert a degree into mobility.

MOBILITY RATE

1.2%

▼ -0.5pp vs natl

Bottom 20% → Top 20%
LOW-INCOME ACCESS

9%

From bottom quintile
SUCCESS RATE

16%

If bottom 20% enroll
FIRST-GENERATION

37%

First-gen students
TALENT RETENTION

71%

First-year retention
SOCIAL CAPITAL

1.53

Economic connectedness

Mobility Leaders — Institutions Driving Upward Movement

Labor Market Alignment

Missouri's Technology programs produce graduates earning $54,727, +6.1% relative to the national median. Humanities graduates, however, earn 19.9% below the national median, a possible sign the state produces more of these degrees than its labor market absorbs.

Humanities
19% of enrollment

$41,303 -19.9% vs natl

27 schools
Business
17% of enrollment

$47,636 -7.6% vs natl

49 schools
Healthcare
17% of enrollment

$50,874 -1.4% vs natl

52 schools
Social Sciences
9% of enrollment

$50,053 -2.9% vs natl

31 schools
Technology
7% of enrollment

$54,727 +6.1% vs natl

18 schools
Education
6% of enrollment

$42,752 -17.1% vs natl

30 schools

Overperforming Sectors

Technology: +6.1% vs national earnings ($54,727)

Potential Oversupply Signals

Humanities: -19.9% vs national — wage pressure suggests oversupply

Education: -17.1% vs national — wage pressure suggests oversupply

Business: -7.6% vs national — wage pressure suggests oversupply

Institutional Landscape

Missouri's higher education system includes 4 research-oriented, 15 specialized, 10 access-oriented, 53 regional institutions. Each group plays a different role in the state's outcomes.

4

Research Universities
53

Regional Universities
10

Access-Oriented Institutions
15

Specialized Institutions

Research Universities

Access-Oriented Institutions

Cost & Access Corridors

37% of Missouri's colleges charge under $15K net. Graduates of those schools average $40,439 at 10 years.

NET PRICE UNDER $15K

25

37% of schools
Avg earnings: $40,439
NET PRICE $15K–$25K

35

52% of schools
Avg earnings: $50,860
NET PRICE $25K–$40K

7

10% of schools
Avg earnings: $67,646

Top Earners

Schools ranked by median graduate earnings 10 years after enrolling.

Higher education in Missouri

Missouri is home to 135 colleges and universities, from 41 public institutions to 53 private nonprofits. University of Missouri-Columbia anchors the public system, and graduates across the state earn a median of about $43,667 ten years after enrolling.

Higher education clusters around Kansas City, Saint Louis and Springfield, and the strongest programs by enrollment are Health Professions, Business & Marketing and Education. We rank every school here by what its graduates actually earn and how far they move up — not by reputation or sticker price.

What college costs in Missouri

The average net price — what students actually pay after grants and scholarships — runs about $17,642 a year across Missouri. Jefferson College stands out on return: strong graduate earnings against a comparatively low net price. Public universities and in-state tuition remain the clearest path to a low-debt degree, while need-based aid can make selective private schools surprisingly competitive.

Most Affordable Schools

Jobs & industries

Missouri's economy leans on healthcare & bioscience, aerospace & defense and logistics, which shapes which degrees pay off fastest in-state. Programs in Health Professions, Business & Marketing and Education feed directly into those employers, and graduates who stay in-region benefit from established hiring pipelines and alumni networks.

Licensure & transfer

Licensure and articulation are state-specific: nursing, teaching, law, and the health professions are regulated at the Missouri level, so an in-state program is often the most direct route to practicing here. Community-college transfer agreements with public universities can also cut the cost of a four-year degree substantially.

Cost vs Return

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

MEDIAN EARNINGS (10YR)

$43,667

▼ $-170 vs natl

AVG NET PRICE

$17,642

▲ $-434 vs natl

EARNINGS / COST RATIO

2.5x

Return per dollar invested

Best Value Schools

HBCUs in Missouri

Is Missouri Right for You?

Missouri is a strong fit if you want to build a career in healthcare & bioscience and aerospace & defense, value in-state tuition, or plan to work in the region after graduation. Use the rankings and filters below to weigh earnings, cost, and mobility for every school in the state.

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

Related Rankings

Top Schools

University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis · MO Chamberlain University-Missouri · MO Washington University in St Louis · MO Research College of Nursing · MO Barnes-Jewish College Goldfarb School of Nursing · MO Missouri University of Science and Technology · MO

FAQ

How many colleges are in Missouri?

There are 135 colleges and universities in Missouri in our dataset — 41 public, 53 private nonprofit, including 2 HBCUs.

What is the highest-earning college in Missouri?

By median graduate earnings 10 years out, University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis leads, followed by schools like Chamberlain University-Missouri and Washington University in St Louis.

How much does college cost in Missouri?

The average net price — tuition and living costs after grants — is about $17,642 per year. In-state public tuition is typically the lowest-cost path.

What are the best-paying career fields in Missouri?

Missouri's economy is anchored by healthcare & bioscience, aerospace & defense and logistics, so degrees feeding those industries tend to pay off fastest in-state.

Is it worth going to college in Missouri?

For most students, yes — especially at in-state public universities and high-value private schools. Jefferson College, for example, pairs strong earnings with a low net price. Weigh earnings against net price using the data on this page.

All 135 schools in Missouri

Data Behind This Page Updated 2026

135 institutions in Missouri

2026 Last updated

100% Public / federal sources

Source datasets

Methodology

States are graded on graduate earnings, social mobility, completion, and cost — each drawn from federal data and Opportunity Insights research, then normalized into a single Outcomes Index (0–100).

See the full methodology and weights →

Confidence notes

Earnings, completion, and debt figures come from federal administrative records — tax data and student-aid filings — not surveys or self-reports, the highest-confidence tier of education data available.
Social-mobility estimates are drawn from de-identified tax records covering more than 30 million students (Opportunity Insights).
Where an institution is missing a metric, it is excluded from that metric rather than imputed, so averages are never inflated by guesses.

Limitations

Federal earnings data primarily cover students who received federal financial aid; outcomes for non-aided students may differ.
Earnings are measured roughly ten years after enrollment, so they describe how earlier cohorts fared — historical outcomes, not guarantees of future results.
An institution's field-of-study mix affects raw earnings; scores reflect measured outcomes and are not fully major-adjusted unless explicitly noted.
Net price is an average; the actual cost a given student pays varies widely by family income.

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