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🇺🇸 Best Architecture Programs in United States by ROI
Ranked by ROI score — net salary after rent and living costs, weighted by graduation rate, relative to total degree tuition. Salary figures are median graduate earnings from government data (2026).
| # | University | ROI | Salary ($) | Payback | Tuition ($/yr) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus Architecture. | 16.2 | $38,037 | 6 yrs | $33,925 |
| 2 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Architecture. | 15.7 | $38,037 | 6 yrs | $36,786 |
| 3 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering. | 14.7 | $36,444 | 6 yrs | $36,786 |
| 4 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Architecture. | 12.3 | $38,037 | 7 yrs | $40,194 |
| 5 | University of New Orleans Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering. | 11.9 | $53,834 | 3 yrs | $34,675 |
| 6 | Rice University Architecture. | 11.8 | $34,993 | 8 yrs | $37,436 |
| 7 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus Architecture. | 10.3 | $34,993 | 7 yrs | $42,840 |
| 8 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering. | 10.2 | $53,834 | 9 yrs | $69,868 |
| 9 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Landscape Architecture. | 9.8 | $33,185 | 9 yrs | $40,194 |
| 10 | University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Architecture. | 9.7 | $34,993 | 9 yrs | $46,978 |
| 11 | University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus Landscape Architecture. | 9.5 | $33,185 | 8 yrs | $42,840 |
| 12 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion Architecture. | 9.4 | $38,037 | 7 yrs | $41,908 |
| 13 | University of Wisconsin-Madison Landscape Architecture. | 9.2 | $33,185 | 10 yrs | $48,591 |
| 14 | University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Landscape Architecture. | 8.9 | $33,185 | 10 yrs | $46,978 |
| 15 | Ohio State University-Main Campus Landscape Architecture. | 8.8 | $33,185 | 10 yrs | $48,549 |
| 16 | North Carolina State University at Raleigh Landscape Architecture. | 8.2 | $33,185 | 10 yrs | $48,448 |
| 17 | University of California-Los Angeles Architecture. | 8.0 | $38,037 | 11 yrs | $35,134 |
| 18 | University of California-Berkeley Architecture. | 7.4 | $38,037 | 12 yrs | $37,747 |
| 19 | Harvard University Architecture. | 7.1 | $38,037 | 14 yrs | $53,385 |
| 20 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Landscape Architecture. | 6.9 | $24,122 | 13 yrs | $36,786 |
| 21 | University of Georgia Landscape Architecture. | 6.8 | $26,415 | 13 yrs | $39,021 |
| 22 | Columbia University in the City of New York Architecture. | 6.8 | $38,037 | 14 yrs | $60,452 |
| 23 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology Architecture. | 6.7 | $38,037 | 15 yrs | $56,311 |
| 24 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus Landscape Architecture. | 6.4 | $33,185 | 13 yrs | $39,455 |
| 25 | California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo Architecture. | 5.4 | $37,771 | 16 yrs | $46,662 |