News: Return on Investment for William & Mary Degree Remains Among State’s Best
Earning potential of graduates from CNU, ODU also higher than median for grads of colleges in Virginia
The 10th Annual 2024 State of the Commonwealth Report, recently issued by a consortium of research groups at Old Dominion University, explored the question of whether attending college in Virginia is a good investment in terms of cost and future earning potential. The report notes that a study by Georgetown University recently concluded that a college graduate will typically earn more than $1.2M over their lifetime. Yet the study’s authors also point out that according to the United States Department of Education, more than 1 out of 5 college graduates nationwide will make less than the median wages for high school graduates. The overall results of Virginia public and private four-year schools are comparable according to the study.
The authors of the State of the Commonwealth Report conclude that the ultimate answer to the question of whether college pays off still depends upon individual circumstances, but can be reliably predicted based on which school someone attended and the degree they obtained. The results show that local schools like William and Mary, Old Dominion and Christopher Newport performed well in graduate earning potential versus statewide marks. They also indicate that degrees such as engineering and business typically ensure higher earning potential for graduates than those in liberal arts and humanities.
According to the report’s authors, the typical experience of a student at William and Mary includes lower net cost of attendance than the state median, as well as higher incomes after graduation than peers from other 4-year schools in the Virginia. The report relies on data collected by the US Department of Education which tracks the differences in incomes earned by both college and high school graduates. The DOE also makes the information available through its College Scorecard website.
William and Mary students can generally expect to do better financially than most high school graduates and better than their peers who graduated from other schools in the state. The school also scores well in an analysis that compares costs to attend with future earnings. A higher “Income-to-Cost Ratio” could indicate a larger return on investment for most students, according to the study’s authors. A review of statistics related to local schools provided in the report are summarized below.
Income-to-Cost Ratio
Virginia public college median - 1.23
Christopher Newport - 1.17
Hampton - 0.70
Norfolk State - 1.47
Old Dominion - 1.76
Regent - 1.30
Richmond - 1.16
Virginia Commonwealth - 1.32
Virginia Wesleyan - 1.05
William & Mary - 1.75
Share of Students Earning More than a High School Graduate – 10 Years After Entry
Virginia public college median - 83.1%
Christopher Newport - 86.2%
Hampton - 80.5%
Norfolk State - 70.5%
Old Dominion - 81.7%
Regent - 68.0%
Richmond - 89.0%
Virginia Commonwealth - 82.2%
Virginia Wesleyan - 77.8%
William & Mary - 88.4%
Median Cohort Earning 6 Years After Entry & 5 Years after Exit
Virginia public college median - $45,839 / $55,674
Christopher Newport - $51,931 / $58,935
Hampton - $42,721 / $59,105
Norfolk State - $33,412 / $51,016
Old Dominion - $46,732 / $57,859
Regent - $42,066 / $49,687
Richmond - $67,927 / $79,784
Virginia Commonwealth - $47,161 / $61,414
Virginia Wesleyan - $39,200 / $48,912
William & Mary - $62,959 / $71,274
Payscale Mid-Career Median Salary Estimates
Virginia public college median - $104,850
Christopher Newport - $105,400
Hampton - $112,900
Norfolk State - $91,500
Old Dominion - $108,300
Regent - $89,800
Richmond - $133,400
Virginia Commonwealth - $107,500
Virginia Wesleyan - $96,000
William & Mary $136,300
Average Total & Net Cost of Attendance
Virginia public college median - $41,746 / $22,335
Christopher Newport - $31,162 / $22,609
Hampton - $46,123 / $40,511
Norfolk State - $26,039 / $15,577
Old Dominion - $26,060 / $15,415
Regent - $29,448 / $17,220
Richmond - $74,354 / $28,649
Virginia Commonwealth - $33,388 / $20,405
Virginia Wesleyan - $50,638 / $22,807
William & Mary - $40,624 / $19,624
Percent of Undergraduate Students Receiving Federal Loans & Pell Grants
Virginia public college median - 61.3% / 33.4%
Christopher Newport - 38.2% / 15.3%
Hampton - 67.1% / 44.5%
Norfolk State - 61.4% / 68.5%
Old Dominion - 51.9% / 45.6%
Regent - 50.5% / 41.4%
Richmond - 31.0% / 16.7%
Virginia Commonwealth - 45.1% / 32.4%
Virginia Wesleyan - 63.6% / 34.0%
William & Mary - 25.4% / 11.8%
Annual Earnings of Degree Holders in 2021 Dollars 10-years post-graduation
Business, Management, Marketing - $86,094
Engineering - $110,617
Liberal Arts and Sciences, Humanities - $56,416
(Update: spelling errors corrected 12/31/24)
George Arbogust is Founder and Editor of the Williamsburg Independent. You can contribute too! Send stories and ideas to contact@williamsburgindependent.com.