Best-Value Colleges in New Jersey
15 New Jersey 4-year colleges ranked by return on investment - 10-year graduate earnings per dollar of net price - among schools that beat the state median on earnings and graduation rate.
Quick answer
The best-value college in New Jersey is Princeton University, Princeton - a net price of $7,815 against $110,066 in median 10-year earnings, an ROI of 14.1×, with a 97% graduation rate. Every school here turns a modest cost into outsized, above-median earnings.
| # | School | Net price /yr | 10-yr earnings | ROI (earn ÷ price) | Grad rate | In-state tuition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Princeton University Princeton, NJ | $7,815 | $110,066 | 14.1× | 97% | $65,510 |
| 2 |  Saint Peter's University Jersey City, NJ | $8,127 | $57,815 | 7.1× | 63% | $43,170 |
| 3 |  Rutgers University-Camden Camden, NJ | $15,732 | $74,479 | 4.7× | 66% | $18,651 |
| 4 |  Rutgers University-Newark Newark, NJ | $16,013 | $74,479 | 4.7× | 68% | $18,112 |
| 5 |  New Jersey Institute of Technology Newark, NJ | $18,783 | $84,276 | 4.5× | 73% | $21,162 |
| 6 |  Ramapo College of New Jersey Mahwah, NJ | $16,382 | $67,541 | 4.1× | 72% | $17,615 |
| 7 |  Montclair State University Montclair, NJ | $15,193 | $61,415 | 4.0× | 64% | $16,854 |
| 8 |  Rutgers University-New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ | $24,897 | $74,479 | 3.0× | 85% | $18,824 |
| 9 |  Stevens Institute of Technology Hoboken, NJ | $37,396 | $108,772 | 2.9× | 90% | $65,606 |
| 10 |  The College of New Jersey Ewing, NJ | $26,752 | $73,323 | 2.7× | 85% | $20,378 |
| 11 |  Rider University Lawrenceville, NJ | $24,780 | $62,208 | 2.5× | 63% | $43,240 |
| 12 |  Rowan University Glassboro, NJ | $23,938 | $59,988 | 2.5× | 68% | $17,428 |
| 13 |  Drew University Madison, NJ | $25,614 | $63,646 | 2.5× | 72% | $49,100 |
| 14 |  Seton Hall University South Orange, NJ | $31,552 | $70,196 | 2.2× | 71% | $55,040 |
| 15 |  Monmouth University West Long Branch, NJ | $30,978 | $67,991 | 2.2× | 70% | $48,299 |
How we ranked this
From every New Jersey four-year college that publishes net price, 10-year median earnings, and graduation rate, we keep only those that beat the state median on earnings and that graduate at least 45% of students (or the state median grad rate, whichever is higher). We then rank by ROI = 10-year median earnings ÷ average annual net price - the dollars of graduate earnings each dollar of net price buys - highest first. This rewards genuine return on investment rather than the cheapest sticker price, and the 4-year + outcome guards keep out the low-completion and 2-year outliers a pure price sort surfaces. Colleges missing any of the three figures are excluded, never estimated. Minimum 5 qualifying schools required to publish a page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best-value college in New Jersey?+
Princeton University in Princeton has the highest return on investment among New Jersey 4-year colleges that beat the state median on outcomes: a net price of $7,815 against $110,066 in 10-year median earnings - an ROI of 14.1× (dollars earned per dollar of annual net price) - with a 97% graduation rate.
What does "net price" mean?+
Net price is the average annual cost students actually pay after grants and scholarships are subtracted from the full cost of attendance - a far better affordability measure than sticker tuition. We use the College Scorecard average net price.
How is "best value" defined here?+
Value means return on investment, not cheapness. Among New Jersey four-year colleges that beat the state median on BOTH 10-year graduate earnings and graduation rate (and graduate at least 45% of students), we rank by the ROI ratio = 10-year median earnings ÷ average annual net price. The school that turns each tuition dollar into the most graduate earnings ranks first.
Is the cheapest college always the best value?+
No. A rock-bottom price that leads to low earnings is worse value than a moderate price that leads to high earnings. That is exactly why we rank by the earnings-to-net-price ratio rather than by lowest price, and require above-median earnings and graduation rates first. Colleges missing net price, earnings, or graduation data are excluded rather than estimated.
Keep exploring
Data sources: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard · IPEDS. 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.