Ranked by graduate earnings
Best colleges for Psychology
50 Psychology programs ranked by real graduate earnings, debt, and completion - from the College Scorecard Field-of-Study data.
Quick answer
For Psychology, Georgetown University (District of Columbia) ranks #1 by our outcome score, with median graduate earnings of $99,007. Rankings reflect earnings, debt, and completion - not reputation or cost - across 50 programs with published outcome data.
| # | School | Credential | Median earnings | Median debt | Completers | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington, DC | Bachelor's Degree | $99,007 | $17,500 | 106 | 93.9 |
| 2 | ![]() Evanston, IL | Bachelor's Degree | $73,646 | $13,500 | 153 | 92.8 |
| 3 | ![]() Ithaca, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $78,049 | $13,000 | 80 | 92.3 |
| 4 | Los Angeles, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $70,461 | $14,000 | 183 | 91.8 |
| 5 | ![]() Santa Clara, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $75,742 | $17,000 | 122 | 91.7 |
| 6 | Nashville, TN | Bachelor's Degree | $71,584 | $11,187 | 100 | 91.7 |
| 7 | WC Williamstown, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $72,891 | $13,416 | 64 | 90.4 |
| 8 | ![]() Easton, PA | Bachelor's Degree | $73,435 | $16,000 | 66 | 90 |
| 9 | Vestal, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $67,249 | $18,500 | 310 | 89.7 |
| 10 | ![]() Houston, TX | Bachelor's Degree | $67,648 | $12,505 | 77 | 89.5 |
| 11 | Chestnut Hill, MA | Bachelor's Degree | $70,033 | $18,000 | 116 | 89.1 |
| 12 | Provo, UT | Bachelor's Degree | $62,106 | $11,000 | 193 | 88.8 |
| 13 | ![]() Notre Dame, IN | Bachelor's Degree | $69,793 | $18,570 | 97 | 88.3 |
| 14 | CGSU New York, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $64,619 | $11,500 | 77 | 88.3 |
| 15 | Philadelphia, PA | Master's Degree | $101,785 | $20,500 | 41 | 88.3 |
| 16 | Los Angeles, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $61,050 | $14,388 | 648 | 88.1 |
| 17 | Fairfax, VA | Bachelor's Degree | $62,563 | $17,625 | 405 | 87.8 |
| 18 | ![]() Middlebury, VT | Bachelor's Degree | $71,410 | $17,256 | - | 87.4 |
| 19 | ![]() Elon, NC | Bachelor's Degree | $69,856 | $19,500 | 111 | 87.3 |
| 20 | ![]() Lexington, VA | Bachelor's Degree | $75,059 | $19,250 | 39 | 87 |
| 21 | Staten Island, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $59,741 | $13,000 | 357 | 86.8 |
| 22 | ![]() New York, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $59,149 | $11,386 | 673 | 86.8 |
| 23 | ![]() Villanova, PA | Bachelor's Degree | $73,684 | $21,500 | 105 | 86.2 |
| 24 | Charlottesville, VA | Bachelor's Degree | $62,794 | $19,268 | 251 | 86.2 |
| 25 | ![]() Bethlehem, PA | Bachelor's Degree | $74,939 | $21,160 | 63 | 85.9 |
| 26 | ![]() San Diego, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $74,178 | $22,500 | 123 | 85.5 |
| 27 | ![]() Logan, UT | Master's Degree | $69,115 | $20,934 | 97 | 85.3 |
| 28 | Bloomington, IN | Doctoral Degree | $131,290 | - | - | 85 |
| 29 | Raleigh, NC | Bachelor's Degree | $62,032 | $20,063 | 305 | 84.7 |
| 30 | Santa Cruz, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $59,948 | $18,902 | 431 | 84.5 |
| 31 | ![]() Queens, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $57,210 | $9,623 | 691 | 84.3 |
| 32 | Durham, NC | Bachelor's Degree | $73,359 | $15,415 | 0 | 84.3 |
| 33 | ![]() Athens, GA | Bachelor's Degree | $59,446 | $18,845 | 581 | 84.1 |
| 34 | ![]() Davidson, NC | Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $64,714 | $18,500 | - | 84.1 |
| 35 | Orange, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $63,617 | $20,500 | 138 | 84 |
| 36 | Reno, NV | Doctoral Degree | $98,544 | - | - | 83.9 |
| 37 | San Luis Obispo, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $60,466 | $18,916 | 156 | 83.8 |
| 38 | New York, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $58,476 | $13,051 | 125 | 83.8 |
| 39 | CGSU New York, NY | Master's Degree | $60,494 | $18,128 | 111 | 83.8 |
| 40 | Stony Brook, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $58,137 | $16,750 | 591 | 83.7 |
| 41 | ![]() Winston-Salem, NC | Bachelor's Degree | $64,814 | $21,393 | 115 | 83.7 |
| 42 | College Station, TX | Bachelor's Degree | $58,396 | $17,750 | 550 | 83.7 |
| 43 | Fort Worth, TX | Bachelor's Degree | $65,356 | $21,375 | 96 | 83.7 |
| 44 | Los Angeles, CA | Doctoral Degree | $100,014 | - | 36 | 83.6 |
| 45 | ![]() Azusa, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $63,963 | $21,500 | 150 | 83.3 |
| 46 | ![]() Los Angeles, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $60,958 | $19,500 | 158 | 83.2 |
| 47 | ![]() Williamsburg, VA | Bachelor's Degree | $59,226 | $17,924 | 158 | 83.2 |
| 48 | Gainesville, FL | Doctoral Degree | $103,154 | - | 28 | 82.9 |
| 49 | ![]() Minneapolis, MN | Bachelor's Degree | $58,449 | $19,012 | 523 | 82.9 |
| 50 | Dallas, TX | Bachelor's Degree | $72,136 | $23,250 | 103 | 82.9 |
Hidden Gems for Psychology
Lower-profile schools with a genuinely strong outcome score for Psychology - the famous brand names and mega-flagships are deliberately filtered out.
| # | School | Median earnings | Admit rate | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CGSU New York, NY Strong Psychology outcome score, accessible admissions, smaller, lower-profile campus | $64,619 | 68% | 88.3 |
| 2 | ![]() Elon, NC Strong Psychology outcome score, accessible admissions, lower-profile than the field’s famous names | $69,856 | 66% | 87.3 |
| 3 | ![]() Lexington, VA Strong Psychology outcome score, accessible admissions, smaller, lower-profile campus | $75,059 | 71% | 87 |
| 4 | Staten Island, NY Strong Psychology outcome score, accessible admissions, lower-profile than the field’s famous names | $59,741 | 92% | 86.8 |
| 5 | Orange, CA Strong Psychology outcome score, accessible admissions, lower-profile than the field’s famous names | $63,617 | 65% | 84 |
| 6 | ![]() Azusa, CA Strong Psychology outcome score, accessible admissions, smaller, lower-profile campus | $63,963 | 88% | 83.3 |
| 7 | Rohnert Park, CA Strong Psychology outcome score, accessible admissions, lower-profile than the field’s famous names | $57,335 | 93% | 81.9 |
| 8 | ![]() | $79,347 | - | 81.7 |
| 9 | ![]() St. Mary's City, MD Strong Psychology outcome score, accessible admissions, smaller, lower-profile campus | $61,214 | 69% | 81.3 |
| 10 | New York, NY Strong Psychology outcome score, accessible admissions, lower-profile than the field’s famous names | $75,549 | 76% | 81.2 |
| 11 | ![]() Brooklyn, NY Strong Psychology outcome score, accessible admissions, smaller, lower-profile campus | $56,458 | 86% | 81.1 |
| 12 | SJSU Brooklyn, NY Strong Psychology outcome score, accessible admissions, smaller, lower-profile campus | $59,679 | 72% | 80.2 |
Hidden Gems use the same College Scorecard outcome score, then drop the pool’s most-selective brands (bottom-quartile admit rate) and largest campuses (top-quartile enrollment). Schools that don’t report admit rate or enrollment are not dropped by that guard.
How we ranked this
Programs are scored 0-100 within the Psychology field (CIP 42.01) 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 Psychology programs, so the score is robust to outliers and comparable across schools. Programs with no published earnings are excluded - 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 Psychology program?+
By our outcome score, Georgetown University (District of Columbia) ranks #1 for Psychology, with median graduate earnings of $99,007.
How are these Psychology programs ranked?+
Each program gets a 0-100 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 Psychology 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 (bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral).
Keep exploring
Data sources: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (Field of Study) · IPEDS Completions. Figures are the most recent values published in each federal dataset; cells with no published value are shown as “-” and never estimated. GetInto.College does not sell rankings or accept placement fees.
























