Best Colleges for Mathematics
50 Mathematics programs ranked by real graduate earnings, debt, and completion β from the College Scorecard Field-of-Study data.
For Mathematics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Massachusetts) ranks #1 by our outcome score, with median graduate earnings of $174,951. Rankings reflect earnings, debt, and completion β not reputation or cost β across 50 programs with published outcome data.
| # | School | Credential | Median earnings | Median debt | Completers | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $174,951 | $9,751 | 126 | 98.8 |
| 2 | University of Chicago Chicago, IL | Bachelor's Degree | $172,826 | $12,000 | 169 | 98.2 |
| 3 | Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN | Bachelor's Degree | $141,171 | $9,644 | 151 | 98.2 |
| 4 | Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD | Bachelor's Degree | $134,785 | $10,859 | 135 | 97.8 |
| 5 | Duke University Durham, NC | Bachelor's Degree | $297,029 | $9,500 | 53 | 97.5 |
| 6 | Cornell University Ithaca, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $134,455 | $13,500 | 93 | 96.2 |
| 7 | Dartmouth College Hanover, NH | Bachelor's Degree | $168,580 | $11,617 | 45 | 96.1 |
| 8 | Amherst College Amherst, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $124,324 | $13,900 | 89 | 95.2 |
| 9 | Williams College Williamstown, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $134,304 | $13,807 | 53 | 94.6 |
| 10 | Northwestern University Evanston, IL | Bachelor's Degree | $107,072 | $12,418 | 62 | 92.9 |
| 11 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC | Bachelor's Degree | $101,599 | $15,127 | 137 | 92.7 |
| 12 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus Seattle, WA | Bachelor's Degree | $100,127 | $15,000 | 200 | 92.6 |
| 13 | University of California-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $99,269 | $14,920 | 193 | 92.4 |
| 14 | Georgetown University Washington, DC | Bachelor's Degree | $127,760 | $17,500 | 50 | 90.7 |
| 15 | University of Washington-Bothell Campus Bothell, WA | Bachelor's Degree | $100,127 | $15,000 | 50 | 90.4 |
| 16 | Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $111,072 | $18,000 | 85 | 89.4 |
| 17 | University of Florida Gainesville, FL | Bachelor's Degree | $93,022 | $16,111 | 122 | 89 |
| 18 | Tufts University Medford, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $110,512 | $17,750 | 38 | 87.6 |
| 19 | Swarthmore College Swarthmore, PA | Bachelor's Degree | $143,223 | β | 53 | 86.9 |
| 20 | Bowdoin College Brunswick, ME | Bachelor's Degree | $159,954 | β | 43 | 86.5 |
| 21 | Washington University in St Louis Saint Louis, MO | Bachelor's Degree | $98,497 | $18,700 | 77 | 86.1 |
| 22 | Columbia University in the City of New York New York, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $117,252 | β | 63 | 85.8 |
| 23 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus Atlanta, GA | Bachelor's Degree | $122,099 | β | 56 | 85.7 |
| 24 | Southern Methodist University Dallas, TX | Bachelor's Degree | $111,773 | $20,000 | 82 | 85.4 |
| 25 | University of Virginia-Main Campus Charlottesville, VA | Bachelor's Degree | $91,236 | $17,468 | 87 | 85.4 |
| 26 | University of Maryland-College Park College Park, MD | Bachelor's Degree | $99,689 | $19,500 | 260 | 85 |
| 27 | University of Wisconsin-Madison Madison, WI | Bachelor's Degree | $101,438 | $20,080 | 226 | 84.8 |
| 28 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI | Bachelor's Degree | $109,146 | $20,675 | 212 | 84.7 |
| 29 | University of Maryland-Baltimore County Baltimore, MD | Bachelor's Degree | $88,967 | $16,500 | 76 | 84.5 |
| 30 | Northeastern University Boston, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $125,084 | $21,750 | 88 | 84.4 |
| 31 | Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC | Bachelor's Degree | $113,570 | β | 26 | 82.8 |
| 32 | New York University New York, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $91,832 | $19,500 | 137 | 82.2 |
| 33 | University of California-Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $85,391 | $17,000 | 132 | 82 |
| 34 | University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, CO | Bachelor's Degree | $90,635 | $19,258 | 117 | 82 |
| 35 | University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN | Bachelor's Degree | $92,118 | $19,000 | 39 | 81.9 |
| 36 | North Carolina State University at Raleigh Raleigh, NC | Bachelor's Degree | $92,594 | $19,949 | 57 | 80.7 |
| 37 | California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $83,187 | $16,636 | 62 | 80 |
| 38 | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $105,768 | $23,250 | 83 | 79.9 |
| 39 | The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX | Bachelor's Degree | $88,434 | $19,500 | 358 | 79.9 |
| 40 | University of Oregon Eugene, OR | Bachelor's Degree | $82,191 | $15,475 | 51 | 79.6 |
| 41 | California State University-Long Beach Long Beach, CA | Master's Degree | $95,395 | β | 24 | 78.9 |
| 42 | Hamilton College Clinton, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $83,211 | $16,275 | 32 | 78.8 |
| 43 | University of Rochester Rochester, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $94,178 | $22,000 | 70 | 78.8 |
| 44 | Boston University Boston, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $84,784 | $19,250 | 135 | 78.3 |
| 45 | University of California-San Diego La Jolla, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $79,015 | $16,250 | 239 | 78 |
| 46 | Bentley University Waltham, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $101,971 | $19,334 | 4 | 77.7 |
| 47 | Colorado School of Mines Golden, CO | Bachelor's Degree | $112,896 | β | 0 | 77.5 |
| 48 | Brigham Young University Provo, UT | Bachelor's Degree | $89,349 | β | 42 | 77.4 |
| 49 | Santa Clara University Santa Clara, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $91,342 | β | 28 | 77.3 |
| 50 | William & Mary Williamsburg, VA | Bachelor's Degree | $87,170 | $20,000 | 81 | 77.1 |
How we ranked this
Programs are scored 0β100 within the Mathematics field (CIP 27.01) using three College Scorecard figures: median graduate earnings (weighted 70%), median federal-loan debt (20%, inverted so lower debt scores higher), and completer count (10%, log-scaled). Each input is percentile-ranked against the other Mathematics programs, so the score is robust to outliers and comparable across schools. Programs with no published earnings are excluded β never given a fabricated number. This is the same engine that powers our interactive Major Rankings. Minimum 5 scorable programs required to publish.
Frequently asked questions
Which college has the best Mathematics program?+
By our outcome score, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Massachusetts) ranks #1 for Mathematics, with median graduate earnings of $174,951.
How are these Mathematics programs ranked?+
Each program gets a 0β100 outcome score from three real College Scorecard figures: median graduate earnings (70%), median federal-loan debt (20%, lower is better), and completer count (10%). Programs are compared within the major so the score reflects the best schools for this field specifically.
Where does the earnings and debt data come from?+
The U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard Field-of-Study file, which publishes median earnings and median debt by institution and major (4-digit CIP). Figures are post-graduation medians; programs without published earnings are not scored and are omitted from this ranking.
Can I filter Mathematics programs by state or degree level?+
Yes. This page shows the national top programs; use the interactive Major Rankings tool to filter the same data by state, and by credential level (bachelorβs, masterβs, doctoral).
Keep exploring
Data sources: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (Field of Study) Β· IPEDS Completions. Figures are the most recent values published in each federal dataset; cells with no published value are shown as βββ and never estimated. CertiHomes Education does not sell rankings or accept placement fees.