A St. Cloud State bachelor’s degree is a top investment for students in Minnesota, according to a study by Seattle salary-watcher PayScale.
The “Best Value Colleges in Minnesota” study values a St. Cloud State bachelor’s degree ahead of degrees at 26 Minnesota colleges, including Concordia University, Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota, Winona State University, Carleton College and Augsburg College.
The study also rates St. Cloud State ahead of its six sister schools in the Minnesota State system.
PayScale’s key metric is 20-year net return on investment (ROI): The difference between student expenditures for a college degree and the money they earn from it.
St. Cloud State’s 20-year net ROI is $320,000 for a student paying in-state tuition.
That compares favorably with Minnesota State Mankato ($309,00), University of Minnesota-Morris ($212,000) and Augsburg College ($209,000), for example.
For in-state students, only four schools have higher ROI, according to the study. They are University of Minnesota Twin Cities ($449,00), Saint John’s University ($405,000), University of St. Thomas ($357,000) and University of Minnesota-Duluth ($323,000).
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Founded in 2002, PayScale was acquired in 2014 by American private equity firm Warburg Pincus. PayScale gathers job profile and salary data from individuals and sells aggregate data to small businesses and Fortune 500 firms.
PayScale’s full definition of 20-year net ROI is the difference between 20-year median pay for a bachelor’s degree graduate and 24-year median pay for a high school graduate, minus the total four-year cost of college.
PayScale defines full cost of education as tuition, fees, room, board, books and supplies. That data is drawn from the federal government’s Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS).
PayScale’s study is consistent with multiple studies that document the college wage premium — a lifetime of financial advantages college graduates have over high school graduates.
