Colleges in Georgia With the Highest Graduate Earnings
Median earnings four years after graduation at the 49 four-year colleges we rank in Georgia run from $119,180 at the top to $39,508 at the bottom, a spread of $79,672.
The median college sits at $54,096, which is $5,307 (9%) below the national median of $59,403. Private nonprofit colleges (22) have a median of $53,271 and public colleges (27) a median of $55,974, and the typical net price across the list is $15,931.
Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus ranks first at $119,180, ahead of Emory University ($90,139) and University of Georgia ($74,144).
How this list is built
A college appears here only if it meets every condition below.
- Colleges considered
- All 4-year colleges (public, private nonprofit and for-profit)
- Ranked by earnings after 4 years, highest first. Ties are broken by larger undergraduate enrollment, then by name.
- Main campuses only, with at least 60% of core data fields reported
- Main campus located in Georgia
- At least 500 undergraduate students enrolled (fall 2024)
- A reported earnings after 4 years value (schools without one are not ranked)
- This page is published only when at least 15 schools qualify; Georgia has 49
- Data period
- Earnings: median earnings four years after completing, measured in 2022 and 2023 for the 2017-18 and 2018-19 cohorts, in 2024 dollars.
- Net price: average for students receiving aid, academic year 2023-24.
- Graduate debt: median federal loan debt of completers, pooled 2020 and 2021 cohorts.
- Graduation rate: first-time, full-time students who started in fall 2018 (4-year) or fall 2021 (2-year), finishing within 150% of normal time.
- Enrollment: undergraduate students, fall 2024.
- Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, June 2026 release.
Showing all 49 qualifying schools. Select a column heading to re-sort the table.
| 1 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus Atlanta, GA Public · 4-year | $119,180 | $12,116 | $21,672 | 93% | 18,785 |
| 2 | Emory University Atlanta, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $90,139 | $22,585 | $18,250 | 91% | 7,298 |
| 3 | University of Georgia Athens, GA Public · 4-year | $74,144 | $13,936 | $18,500 | 89% | 32,137 |
| 4 | Mercer University Macon, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $71,870 | $23,847 | $24,199 | 72% | 4,500 |
| 5 | Kennesaw State University Kennesaw, GA Public · 4-year | $68,306 | $15,048 | $23,833 | 50% | 41,254 |
| 6 | Piedmont University Demorest, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $65,743 | $20,599 | $25,000 | 44% | 1,117 |
| 7 | Thomas University Thomasville, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $63,556 | $18,499 | $21,198 | 28% | 998 |
| 8 | Georgia College & State University Milledgeville, GA Public · 4-year | $62,852 | $20,686 | $22,250 | 63% | 5,947 |
| 9 | Augusta University Augusta, GA Public · 4-year | $62,546 | $13,787 | $20,500 | 49% | 5,613 |
| 10 | Georgia Southern University Statesboro, GA Public · 4-year | $62,342 | $15,267 | $23,250 | 53% | 21,790 |
| 11 | LaGrange College Lagrange, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $62,232 | $20,875 | $25,730 | 44% | 636 |
| 12 | Georgia Southwestern State University Americus, GA Public · 4-year | $62,132 | $12,019 | $18,851 | 36% | 2,424 |
| 13 | Middle Georgia State University Macon, GA Public · 4-year | $62,068 | $12,361 | $19,000 | 25% | 6,574 |
| 14 | Brenau University Gainesville, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $61,654 | $18,924 | $27,000 | 34% | 1,029 |
| 15 | Morehouse College Atlanta, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $61,320 | $39,013 | $25,000 | 56% | 2,844 |
| 16 | Columbus State University Columbus, GA Public · 4-year | $60,912 | $13,115 | $26,000 | 42% | 5,625 |
| 17 | Georgia State University Atlanta, GA Public · 4-year | $58,898 | $15,931 | $20,903 | 53% | 26,623 |
| 18 | Spelman College Atlanta, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $58,897 | $38,967 | $25,000 | 77% | 3,414 |
| 19 | Berry College Mount Berry, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $58,750 | $22,320 | $23,250 | 72% | 2,245 |
| 20 | University of West Georgia Carrollton, GA Public · 4-year | $58,022 | $12,786 | $23,970 | 43% | 7,520 |
| 21 | Georgia Gwinnett College Lawrenceville, GA Public · 4-year | $56,872 | $15,844 | $20,076 | 21% | 11,344 |
| 22 | Valdosta State University Valdosta, GA Public · 4-year | $56,067 | $10,945 | $24,779 | 42% | 6,622 |
| 23 | University of North Georgia Dahlonega, GA Public · 4-year | $55,974 | $9,823 | $17,750 | 37% | 16,146 |
| 24 | Clayton State University Morrow, GA Public · 4-year | $54,430 | $8,365 | $25,706 | 38% | 4,348 |
| 25 | Albany State University Albany, GA Public · 4-year | $54,096 | $11,898 | $25,024 | 27% | 5,956 |
| 26 | Shorter University Rome, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $54,008 | $16,646 | $25,000 | 37% | 1,028 |
| 27 | Reinhardt University Waleska, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $53,795 | $24,425 | $23,900 | 39% | 1,066 |
| 28 | Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College Tifton, GA Public · 4-year | $53,386 | $6,842 | $16,750 | 33% | 3,208 |
| 29 | Agnes Scott College Decatur, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $52,746 | $24,754 | $26,749 | 71% | 836 |
| 30 | College of Coastal Georgia Brunswick, GA Public · 4-year | $52,505 | $15,261 | $15,039 | 26% | 2,979 |
| 31 | Dalton State College Dalton, GA Public · 4-year | $52,160 | $5,012 | $12,937 | 28% | 4,553 |
| 32 | Oglethorpe University Atlanta, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $52,138 | $19,509 | $25,000 | 54% | 1,352 |
| 33 | Life University Marietta, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $51,860 | $29,791 | $16,666 | 36% | 893 |
| 34 | Georgia Highlands College Rome, GA Public · 4-year | $49,888 | $6,928 | $12,000 | 21% | 4,761 |
| 35 | Covenant College Lookout Mountain, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $48,802 | $26,265 | $22,500 | 72% | 939 |
| 36 | Savannah College of Art and Design Savannah, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $47,980 | $49,430 | $25,148 | 70% | 15,243 |
| 37 | Clark Atlanta University Atlanta, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $47,337 | $37,702 | $27,000 | 48% | 3,603 |
| 38 | Truett McConnell University Cleveland, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $47,336 | $22,227 | $23,439 | 39% | 744 |
| 39 | Gordon State College Barnesville, GA Public · 4-year | $47,316 | $8,105 | $17,500 | 19% | 2,544 |
| 40 | Savannah State University Savannah, GA Public · 4-year | $46,912 | $8,172 | $28,000 | 27% | 2,833 |
| 41 | Point University West Point, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $45,849 | $25,335 | $25,250 | 38% | 1,996 |
| 42 | South Georgia State College Douglas, GA Public · 4-year | $44,925 | $8,767 | $11,500 | 18% | 1,466 |
| 43 | Fort Valley State University Fort Valley, GA Public · 4-year | $44,844 | $10,338 | $31,000 | 43% | 2,684 |
| 44 | Young Harris College Young Harris, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $43,173 | $22,034 | $27,000 | 44% | 755 |
| 45 | Emmanuel University Franklin Springs, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $42,976 | $20,925 | $24,325 | 38% | 775 |
| 46 | East Georgia State College Swainsboro, GA Public · 4-year | $41,835 | $9,626 | $11,750 | 15% | 1,413 |
| 47 | Atlanta Metropolitan State College Atlanta, GA Public · 4-year | $40,965 | $5,258 | $14,123 | 16% | 1,228 |
| 48 | Toccoa Falls College Toccoa Falls, GA Private nonprofit · 4-year | $39,953 | $21,642 | $22,250 | 45% | 875 |
| 49 | Georgia Military College Milledgeville, GA Public · 4-year | $39,508 | $16,923 | $8,563 | 35% | 3,992 |
How to compare these colleges
High earnings partly reflect who enrolls and what they study: engineering, nursing and business programs usually pay more than education or the arts, so a school with strong health or technical programs can top the list. Read the earnings next to net price, debt and graduation rate, because earnings count only people who finished, and four years after graduation is early in a career.
Guides worth reading first
More lists for Georgia
Cheapest colleges in Georgia
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Cheap colleges in Georgia for out-of-state students
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Best value colleges in Georgia
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Most affordable private colleges in Georgia
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Same list in nearby states
Highest graduate earnings in Florida
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Highest graduate earnings in North Carolina
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Highest graduate earnings in Tennessee
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All 67 colleges in Georgia See the national version of this ranking