NEW: URI Named #13 Best Value by SmartMoney Magazine

The Wall Street Journal's high-profile magazine has once again cited the University of Rhode Island as one of the best values in higher education. The nationwide survey examines the relationship between tuition costs and graduates’ earning power. Brown University ranked #32 in the nation.  

 “We are pleased that once again the SmartMoney study has shown that the University of Rhode Island provides its students with an excellent education at an affordable price, and prepares them for rewarding careers. It’s exciting to see that the return on the investment in a URI education has continued to improve in recent years, despite the difficult economic situation we are facing as a nation,” said URI Dean of Admission Cynthia Bonn.  

The Payback Score

In what they've dubbed their "Payback Score," the magazine assessed public and private colleges on their ability to deliver the best return on investment and sought to quantify the long-term value of a college education based on alumni salaries. When the survey was first published in 2008, URI was ranked at #15 for its return on investment. 

At #13, URI is followed by the University of Connecticut at #14, University of New Hampshire at #20, and University of Vermont at #30. The top 18 schools listed are public institutions. Princeton is ranked #19, Dartmouth College at #21, and Harvard is at #22.  

SmartMoney magazine reporter Sara Germano said the publication repeated the survey this year considering today's economic climate."We know people are paying very close attention to their expenses and begin to look at what return they might expect from their investment in college. So unlike many other college surveys, we wanted to show the straightforward information about the simple costs and outcomes based on alumni earnings."  

Working with the consultant PayScale.com, the Payback Score looks at what graduates from 50 of the most expensive four-year colleges earn in their early and mid-careers. Then they factored in their up-front tuition and fees. 

Click here for the complete article with the full chart of rankings.