College Rankings

Best Allied Health Schools

The top 25 of 169 U.S. colleges offering an undergraduate Allied Health degree, ranked by early-career earnings and return on investment — using each school's real, aid-adjusted net price rather than sticker tuition.

Is Allied Health worth it?

This is one of the most reliable investments in higher education, provided you play the geography game correctly. Healthcare is highly regionalized, and allied health roles are in perpetual, desperate demand as the population ages. The payoff is immense if you attend a strategically placed college with direct pipelines into major urban hospital systems. The catch? You do not need a prestige degree to get these jobs. Hospital hiring managers do not care about Ivy League reputations; they care about clinical hours, board pass rates, and licensure. Because of this, the value overwhelmingly sits with state schools and regional colleges that have locked down clinical rotations with local healthcare conglomerates, allowing you to secure a high-wage job without taking on crushing debt.

Filter by state

#	School	State	Score	Median earnings	Net price / yr	10-yr net ROI
1	University of Washington-Seattle Campus	WA	83	$135,384	$14,091†	+$1.3M
2	California State University-Northridge	CA	83	$100,724	$7,021†	+$979K
3	Wagner College	NY	81	$129,269	$28,241	+$1.2M
4	D'Youville University	NY	80	$101,885	$20,433	+$937K
5	St. John's University-New York	NY	79	$100,883	$29,999	+$889K
6	Stony Brook University	NY	79	$92,165	$18,784†	+$847K
7	National University	CA	78	$92,748	$22,878	+$836K
8	Oregon Institute of Technology	OR	77	$83,906	$15,706†	+$776K
9	Georgia State University	GA	75	$78,175	$15,931†	+$718K
10	Indiana University-Indianapolis	IN	75	$71,505	$11,668†	+$668K
11	Valencia College	FL	75	$68,564	$12,037†	+$637K
12	Long Island University	NY	74	$92,696	$33,062	+$795K
13	Indiana University-Northwest	IN	74	$68,086	$5,130†	+$660K
14	Midwestern State University	TX	74	$67,953	$11,656†	+$633K
15	Indiana University-Kokomo	IN	74	$67,342	$3,968†	+$658K
16	Seattle University	WA	73	$102,664	$34,662	+$888K
17	Siena Heights University	MI	73	$76,696	$17,124	+$698K
18	University of Cincinnati-Blue Ash College	OH	73	$75,317	$16,508†	+$687K
19	Ferris State University	MI	73	$67,423	$8,624†	+$640K
20	Weber State University	UT	73	$67,333	$10,258†	+$632K
21	Manhattan University	NY	73	$64,512	$27,256	+$536K
22	Morehead State University	KY	73	$64,504	$9,793†	+$606K
23	Salisbury University	MD	72	$80,088	$17,743†	+$730K
24	St Catherine University	MN	72	$72,272	$19,764	+$644K
25	University of North Carolina at Charlotte	NC	72	$67,997	$15,435†	+$618K
26	Rhode Island College	RI	72	$60,999	$9,478†	+$572K
27	University of New Mexico-Main Campus	NM	72	$57,714	$15,489†	+$515K
28	CUNY New York City College of Technology	NY	71	$92,818	$5,127†	+$908K
29	University of Southern Indiana	IN	71	$69,965	$12,923†	+$648K
30	Southern Illinois University-Carbondale	IL	71	$69,021	$13,297†	+$637K
31	University of Nevada-Las Vegas	NV	71	$62,134	$10,359†	+$580K
32	Barry University	FL	70	$144,190	$22,613	+$1.4M
33	Rutgers University-Newark	NJ	70	$72,259	$19,703†	+$644K
34	University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus	OK	70	$67,979	$15,300†	+$619K
35	Thomas Jefferson University	PA	69	$82,918	$28,928	+$713K
36	Boise State University	ID	69	$76,843	$21,610†	+$682K
37	Texas State University	TX	69	$67,965	$16,805†	+$612K
38	North Dakota State University-Main Campus	ND	69	$67,303	$15,543†	+$611K
39	Wayne State University	MI	69	$63,970	$12,766†	+$589K
40	University of Connecticut-Waterbury Campus	CT	69	$60,597	$10,875†	+$562K
41	University of Wisconsin-La Crosse	WI	69	$60,232	$16,210†	+$537K
42	Marshall University	WV	69	$59,017	$7,502†	+$560K
43	Augusta University	GA	69	$58,249	$13,787†	+$527K
44	University of St Francis	IL	69	$50,600	$13,006	+$454K
45	Baptist Health Sciences University	TN	68	$57,633	$11,212	+$531K
46	Seton Hill University	PA	67	$100,987	$22,204	+$921K
47	Rochester Institute of Technology	NY	67	$78,298	$34,906	+$643K
48	University of Cincinnati-Main Campus	OH	67	$75,317	$25,648†	+$651K
49	York College of Pennsylvania	PA	67	$67,814	$18,556	+$604K
50	AdventHealth University	FL	66	$77,225	$30,135	+$652K
51	Rutgers University-New Brunswick	NJ	66	$72,259	$24,406†	+$625K
52	Washburn University	KS	66	$71,318	$15,280†	+$652K
53	University of Michigan-Flint	MI	66	$64,434	$7,007†	+$616K
54	Ohio State University-Main Campus	OH	66	$60,834	$17,339†	+$539K
55	University of Connecticut-Avery Point	CT	66	$60,597	$13,807†	+$551K
56	Georgia Southern University	GA	66	$58,026	$15,267†	+$519K
57	Grand Valley State University	MI	66	$57,161	$16,317†	+$506K
58	University of Holy Cross	LA	66	$54,241	$15,635	+$480K
59	Youngstown State University	OH	66	$52,212	$12,767†	+$471K
60	Gwynedd Mercy University	PA	65	$76,087	$27,483	+$651K
61	University of Hartford	CT	65	$73,906	$30,282	+$618K
62	Kettering College	OH	65	$65,690	$21,650	+$570K
63	University of Missouri-Columbia	MO	65	$65,660	$20,268†	+$576K
64	Oakland University	MI	65	$62,452	$9,120†	+$588K
65	Arkansas State University	AR	65	$60,202	$12,366†	+$553K
66	Kent State University at Ashtabula	OH	65	$59,567	$12,205†	+$547K
67	Idaho State University	ID	65	$55,838	$12,193†	+$510K
68	Northern Kentucky University	KY	65	$52,094	$8,191†	+$488K
69	University of Vermont	VT	64	$69,873	$19,343†	+$621K
70	Virginia Commonwealth University	VA	64	$66,750	$23,433†	+$574K
71	University of Connecticut-Stamford	CT	64	$60,597	$16,798†	+$539K
72	University of Connecticut-Hartford Campus	CT	64	$60,597	$16,403†	+$540K
73	University of South Alabama	AL	64	$59,611	$17,648†	+$526K
74	Kent State University at Salem	OH	64	$59,567	$13,799†	+$540K
75	Radford University	VA	64	$58,997	$14,578†	+$532K
76	University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh	WI	64	$58,894	$14,305†	+$532K
77	Eastern Kentucky University	KY	64	$56,947	$11,040†	+$525K
78	Avila University	MO	64	$55,605	$16,053	+$492K
79	University of Louisiana at Monroe	LA	64	$50,006	$13,466†	+$446K
80	Molloy University	NY	63	$88,757	$24,347	+$790K
81	Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania	PA	63	$63,826	$15,699†	+$575K
82	Northwestern State University of Louisiana	LA	63	$58,627	$13,606†	+$532K
83	University of Mississippi	MS	63	$50,045	$13,314†	+$447K
84	Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences	MA	62	$76,575	$39,545	+$608K
85	Quinnipiac University	CT	62	$69,600	$40,675	+$533K
86	Ball State University	IN	62	$67,833	$14,940†	+$619K
87	University of Toledo	OH	62	$66,769	$17,249†	+$599K
88	University of Iowa	IA	62	$61,373	$22,531†	+$524K
89	Clarkson College	NE	62	$61,222	$19,241	+$535K
90	Indiana University of Pennsylvania	PA	62	$54,823	$16,804†	+$481K
91	Western Carolina University	NC	62	$53,398	$13,315†	+$481K
92	University of Akron Main Campus	OH	62	$52,237	$13,946†	+$467K
93	Tennessee State University	TN	62	$48,894	$15,796†	+$426K
94	University of Arkansas-Fort Smith	AR	61	$54,484	$10,574†	+$503K
95	Lewis-Clark State College	ID	60	$61,097	$15,635†	+$548K
96	University of Charleston	WV	60	$57,338	$22,107	+$485K
97	Fort Hays State University	KS	59	$62,386	$12,569†	+$574K
98	Saint Louis University	MO	59	$62,107	$24,398	+$523K
99	McNeese State University	LA	59	$57,964	$12,493†	+$530K
100	Jacksonville State University	AL	59	$55,867	$14,279†	+$502K
101	La Roche University	PA	58	$62,596	$20,794	+$543K
102	University of Central Missouri	MO	58	$55,553	$14,462†	+$498K
103	Austin Peay State University	TN	58	$47,809	$9,735†	+$439K
104	Saint Joseph's College of Maine	ME	57	$74,266	$27,555	+$632K
105	Marian University	WI	57	$62,018	$21,937	+$532K
106	University of Connecticut	CT	57	$60,597	$25,097†	+$506K
107	Kent State University at Kent	OH	57	$59,567	$20,787†	+$513K
108	Purdue University Fort Wayne	IN	57	$51,836	$13,171†	+$466K
109	University of Kansas	KS	57	$43,930	$18,059†	+$367K
110	Nova Southeastern University	FL	56	$74,202	$30,371	+$621K
111	Regis College	MA	56	$71,563	$27,477	+$606K
112	Misericordia University	PA	56	$65,521	$37,485	+$505K
113	Colorado Mesa University	CO	56	$54,004	$15,103†	+$480K
114	Shawnee State University	OH	56	$50,391	$14,381†	+$446K
115	Pennsylvania Western University	PA	56	$48,822	$18,256†	+$415K
116	University of Mary	ND	55	$55,153	$17,770	+$480K
117	Saint Cloud State University	MN	55	$42,002	$13,529†	+$366K
118	California State University-Fresno	CA	55	$34,810	$7,000†	+$320K
119	Keiser University-Ft Lauderdale	FL	54	$68,134	$30,498	+$559K
120	Robert Morris University	PA	54	$58,842	$23,003	+$496K
121	Carlow University	PA	54	$56,834	$20,786	+$485K
122	The University of Findlay	OH	53	$62,752	$27,221	+$519K
123	East Tennessee State University	TN	53	$48,671	$15,983†	+$423K
124	Bryan College of Health Sciences	NE	52	$60,447	$26,919	+$497K
125	Bellin College	WI	52	$57,528	$37,408	+$426K
126	Mount Aloysius College	PA	52	$55,139	$22,344	+$462K
127	Bluefield State University	WV	52	$45,918	$13,684†	+$404K
128	Ohio University-Eastern Campus	OH	52	$38,381	$3,925†	+$368K
129	Nebraska Methodist College of Nursing & Allied Health	NE	51	$52,454	$21,863	+$437K
130	Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus	OH	51	$38,381	$5,755†	+$361K
131	Ohio University-Southern Campus	OH	51	$38,381	$5,993†	+$360K
132	Ohio University-Lancaster Campus	OH	51	$38,381	$5,650†	+$361K
133	Ohio University-Zanesville Campus	OH	51	$38,381	$5,746†	+$361K
134	Cleveland State University	OH	51	$26,845	$14,764†	+$209K
135	University of Pittsburgh-Bradford	PA	50	$47,989	$15,350†	+$418K
136	Concordia University Ann Arbor	MI	49	$67,407	$32,811	+$543K
137	Concordia University-Wisconsin	WI	48	$67,407	$36,201	+$529K
138	Sam Houston State University	TX	47	$43,509	$16,404†	+$369K
139	University of South Carolina-Columbia	SC	46	$44,919	$22,811†	+$358K
140	University of Southern Maine	ME	46	$37,585	$13,596†	+$321K
141	Wright State University-Main Campus	OH	45	$41,318	$15,415†	+$352K
142	Carroll University	WI	44	$38,417	$15,193	+$323K
143	Indiana State University	IN	44	$33,345	$10,873†	+$290K
144	Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania	PA	43	$39,290	$19,608†	+$314K
145	University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus	PA	42	$47,989	$30,434†	+$358K
146	Grand Canyon University	AZ	40	$38,079	$22,472	+$291K
147	Florida State University	FL	40	$28,127	$11,297†	+$236K
148	Alcorn State University	MS	39	$36,262	$13,265†	+$310K
149	Ohio University-Main Campus	OH	38	$38,381	$21,637†	+$297K
150	Montclair State University	NJ	37	$36,299	$15,566†	+$301K
151	Winthrop University	SC	33	$33,778	$15,343†	+$276K
152	East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania	PA	33	$20,195	$18,134†	+$129K
153	Sacred Heart University	CT	32	$28,134	$46,174	+$97K
154	Brigham Young University	UT	31	$34,549	$15,564	+$283K
155	Point Loma Nazarene University	CA	31	$29,523	$38,729	+$140K
156	University of New England	ME	31	$27,832	$38,107	+$126K
157	Central Michigan University	MI	30	$28,651	$17,597†	+$216K
158	Hofstra University	NY	28	$28,542	$34,176	+$149K
159	Springfield College	MA	28	$28,487	$30,587	+$163K
160	Universidad Ana G. Mendez-Cupey Campus	PR	28	$15,907	$7,646	+$128K
161	Dominican University New York	NY	27	$30,537	$41,832	+$138K
162	Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Ponce	PR	27	$18,295	$9,026	+$147K
163	Neumann University	PA	26	$31,893	$27,804	+$208K
164	San Diego State University	CA	26	$25,361	$15,364†	+$192K
165	Universidad Central Del Caribe	PR	26	$14,472	$8,524	+$111K
166	Universidad Ana G. Mendez-Carolina Campus	PR	26	$8,943	$7,761	+$58K
167	Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Barranquitas	PR	25	$8,300	$8,726	+$48K
168	Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico-Ponce	PR	24	$9,908	$13,192	+$46K
169	Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Aguadilla	PR	23	$8,926	$8,742	+$54K

Top 10 programs by 10-year net ROI

How to read this: Median earnings = typical pay one year after graduation. Net price = average annual cost after grant aid, incl. living costs — not sticker tuition. 10-yr net ROI = ten years of earnings minus four years of net price. Score = the CollegeRanked Score (0–100) that sets the order — it blends ROI with longer-run earnings, job demand and automation resilience, so a school can outrank one with a slightly higher 10-yr ROI. † = public university — net price shown is the in-state cost; out-of-state students pay more. See the full methodology.

Why these schools rank where they do

The University of Washington-Seattle dominates the number one spot because it is deeply integrated with UW Medicine, one of the premier healthcare systems in the Pacific Northwest. UW graduates don't just get degrees; they get their hands dirty in clinical placements at Harborview Medical Center and the UW Medical Center. These rotations effectively function as multi-year job interviews for some of the highest-paying healthcare roles in a booming, high-wage metro area.

The most striking trend on this list, however, is the sheer dominance of New York institutions. From private Wagner College at number three to public Stony Brook at number six, New York schools are everywhere. The state has a highly unionized, aggressively expanding healthcare sector with an insatiable appetite for diagnostic and therapeutic techs. Schools like Wagner and D'Youville (a Buffalo-based healthcare powerhouse) thrive here because they have ironclad relationships with massive systems like Northwell Health and Catholic Health. When local hospitals need to staff up their radiology departments or clinical labs, they look directly to these local programs.

It is also impossible to ignore the incredible showing of the Indiana University system, with its Indianapolis, Northwest, and Kokomo campuses all cracking the top 15. This is the IU Health pipeline in action. These regional campuses deliver incredibly affordable, specialized degrees that feed their graduates straight into the state's largest healthcare employer, proving that you don't need to leave your home region to find extraordinary return on investment in the medical field.

What is Allied Health?

Allied health is the massive, critical infrastructure of patient care that exists outside of doctors and nurses. These are the professionals running the MRI machines, managing clinical laboratories, administering respiratory therapy, and coordinating health information systems. They are the diagnostic and therapeutic backbone keeping every hospital, clinic, and rehabilitation center in the country functional.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a master's degree to make good money in allied health?

Not at all. Many allied health professions—like radiologic technology, clinical laboratory science, and respiratory therapy—require only a bachelor's degree for full licensure and practice. While you can eventually pursue a master's for hospital administration or a specialized role like physician assistant, a bachelor's alone is a highly lucrative terminal credential that pays for itself very quickly.

Why do so many regional and lesser-known schools rank so high?

In the allied health field, employer relationships matter more than national prestige. Regional schools often have the most robust, long-standing clinical placement agreements with local hospitals. When hiring managers know a school's curriculum aligns perfectly with their facility's equipment and protocols, and they have already watched the students work during their clinical rotations, they hire those graduates on sight.

Should I specialize early or get a general allied health degree?

Specialize. The highest earning potential in this field comes from holding specific clinical certifications. A generic degree in "Health Sciences" is often too broad unless you are using it strictly as a stepping stone to a secondary professional program. Programs that culminate in your eligibility to sit for a specific credentialing exam—like becoming a registered respiratory therapist or a clinical laboratory scientist—offer the most direct, reliable path to a high salary.