{
  "major": "Computer Science",
  "slug": "computer-science",
  "field": "Computing & Data",
  "as_of": "2026",
  "url": "https://collegeranked.com/best-computer-science-schools/",
  "source": "U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2026 release); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics",
  "metric_definitions": {
    "median_earnings": "Median earnings one year after graduation (Scorecard)",
    "net_price": "Average annual cost of attendance after grant aid. For PUBLIC schools this reflects IN-STATE cost; out-of-state students pay more.",
    "roi_10yr_usd": "Ten years of earnings minus four years of net price",
    "public": "true = public university (net_price is in-state basis); false = private (residency-neutral)"
  },
  "total_colleges_with_reported_data": 340,
  "shown": 25,
  "ranking": [
    {
      "rank": 1,
      "school": "Stanford University",
      "state": "CA",
      "median_earnings": 138613,
      "net_price": 13807,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1330902,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 2,
      "school": "Carnegie Mellon University",
      "state": "PA",
      "median_earnings": 171264,
      "net_price": 31944,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1584864,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 3,
      "school": "Massachusetts Institute of Technology",
      "state": "MA",
      "median_earnings": 154492,
      "net_price": 20111,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1464476,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 4,
      "school": "Cornell University",
      "state": "NY",
      "median_earnings": 152656,
      "net_price": 28690,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1411800,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 5,
      "school": "Harvard University",
      "state": "MA",
      "median_earnings": 152251,
      "net_price": 19066,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1446246,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 6,
      "school": "Brown University",
      "state": "RI",
      "median_earnings": 151065,
      "net_price": 25184,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1409914,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 7,
      "school": "University of California-Berkeley",
      "state": "CA",
      "median_earnings": 149866,
      "net_price": 13481,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1444736,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 8,
      "school": "University of Washington-Seattle Campus",
      "state": "WA",
      "median_earnings": 128887,
      "net_price": 14091,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1232506,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 9,
      "school": "University of Washington-Bothell Campus",
      "state": "WA",
      "median_earnings": 128887,
      "net_price": 12319,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1239594,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 10,
      "school": "University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign",
      "state": "IL",
      "median_earnings": 124530,
      "net_price": 14355,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1187880,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 11,
      "school": "Columbia University in the City of New York",
      "state": "NY",
      "median_earnings": 118636,
      "net_price": 21590,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1100000,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 12,
      "school": "University of Chicago",
      "state": "IL",
      "median_earnings": 117578,
      "net_price": 14860,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1116340,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 13,
      "school": "University of California-San Diego",
      "state": "CA",
      "median_earnings": 112006,
      "net_price": 12470,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1070180,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 14,
      "school": "Williams College",
      "state": "MA",
      "median_earnings": 110814,
      "net_price": 17716,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1037276,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 15,
      "school": "University of California-Santa Barbara",
      "state": "CA",
      "median_earnings": 107776,
      "net_price": 16109,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1013324,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 16,
      "school": "Amherst College",
      "state": "MA",
      "median_earnings": 100596,
      "net_price": 23367,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 912492,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 17,
      "school": "Purdue University-Main Campus",
      "state": "IN",
      "median_earnings": 94786,
      "net_price": 14600,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 889460,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 18,
      "school": "University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill",
      "state": "NC",
      "median_earnings": 90293,
      "net_price": 11655,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 856310,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 19,
      "school": "Duke University",
      "state": "NC",
      "median_earnings": 133356,
      "net_price": 29612,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1215112,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 20,
      "school": "Dartmouth College",
      "state": "NH",
      "median_earnings": 132919,
      "net_price": 29519,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1211114,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 21,
      "school": "Harvey Mudd College",
      "state": "CA",
      "median_earnings": 132265,
      "net_price": 35924,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 1178954,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 22,
      "school": "Brigham Young University",
      "state": "UT",
      "median_earnings": 90625,
      "net_price": 15564,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 843994,
      "public": false
    },
    {
      "rank": 23,
      "school": "University of Utah",
      "state": "UT",
      "median_earnings": 90282,
      "net_price": 16200,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 838020,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 24,
      "school": "University of Massachusetts-Lowell",
      "state": "MA",
      "median_earnings": 86167,
      "net_price": 17163,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 793018,
      "public": true
    },
    {
      "rank": 25,
      "school": "William & Mary",
      "state": "VA",
      "median_earnings": 84956,
      "net_price": 19096,
      "roi_10yr_usd": 773176,
      "public": true
    }
  ]
}