The List: Which Area Universities’ Grads Earn the Most

Congrats to the top three: Princeton, Haverford... and Lehigh.

Not all college grads are moving back home or living in small box apartments. According to a study published this month by PayScale.com—which ranks graduates of 1,000 U.S. universities based on how much they earn right out of college, how much they earn by mid-career and the degree to which they feel their careers make the world a better place—some local grads are doing just fine.

How did schools in the region do? Here’s who finished in the top 300. You can check out the full, list, sortable by region, major and type, here.

  • 6. Princeton University | Starting salary: $56,100 • Mid-career salary: $121,000
  • 17 – tie. Haverford College | Starting salary: $38,600 • Mid-career salary: $115,000
  • 20 – tie. Lehigh University | Starting salary: $58,500 • Mid-career salary: $111,000
  • 27 – tie. University of Pennsylvania | Starting salary: $57,200 • Mid-career salary: $109,000
  • 27 – tie. Swarthmore College | Starting salary: $51,000 • Mid-career salary: $109,000
  • 44 – tie. Lafayette College | Starting salary: $57,600 • Mid-career salary: $102,000
  • 61. New Jersey Institute of Technology | Starting salary: $53,900 • Mid-career salary: $98,000
  • 66 – tie. Villanova University | Starting salary: $52,600 • Mid-career salary: $97,100
  • 82. Dickinson College | Starting salary: $43,800 • Mid-career salary: $94,900
  • 94. Franklin and Marshall College | Starting salary: $44,600 • Mid-career salary: $93,700
  • 109 – tie. La Salle University | Starting salary: $44,500 • Mid-career salary: $91,500
  • 112. Gettysburg College | Starting salary: $47,200 • Mid-career salary: $91,300
  • 121 – tie. Rutgers University – New Brunswick Campus | Starting salary: $49,700 • Mid-career salary: $90,400
  • 138 – tie. Muhlenberg College | Starting salary: $44,800 • Mid-career salary: $88,800
  • 141. Drexel University | Starting salary: $52,800 • Mid-career salary: $88,600
  • 176 – tie. Monmouth University – West Long Branch, NJ | Starting salary: $44,000 • Mid-career salary: $86,000
  • 182. Elizabethtown College | Starting salary: $40,200 • Mid-career salary: $85,600
  • 186 – tie. Saint Joseph’s University (SJU) | Starting salary: $49,300 • Mid-career salary: $85,300
  • 194 – tie. University of Scranton | Starting salary: $41,700 • Mid-career salary: $85,000
  • 194 – tie. University of Delaware | Starting salary: $50,300 • Mid-career salary: $85,000
  • 201 – tie. Widener University – Main Campus | Starting salary: $50,200 • Mid-career salary: $84,600
  • 205 – tie. Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) – Main Campus | Starting salary: $50,600 • Mid-career salary: $84,500
  • 227. Rider University | Starting salary: $42,200 • Mid-career salary: $83,400
  • 244 – tie. Holy Family University | Starting salary: $49,400 • Mid-career salary: $82,600
  • 264 – tie. The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) | Starting salary: $48,400 • Mid-career salary: $81,700
  • 277 – tie. Neumann University | Starting salary: $42,800 • Mid-career salary: $81,000
  • 281 – tie. Thomas Edison State College | Starting salary: $49,700 • Mid-career salary: $80,900
  • 283 – tie. Wilkes University | Starting salary: $50,700 • Mid-career salary: $80,800
  • 293 – tie. Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) – Harrisburg Campus | Starting salary: $49,400 • Mid-career salary: $80,400