The Best U.S. Colleges for High-Paying Tech Jobs
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Key Takeaways
- In 2024, the average tech grad from Harvard earned $167,111 in salary—a $45,019 premium over the median tech grad at private institutions.
- Princeton University follows closely behind, with an average salary of $165,497 a decade after graduation.
- Tech grads make up 31% of California-based Harvey Mudd College, the highest share among the top 20 private colleges by wage premiums.
As new tech grads face a fiercely competitive job market, even alumni from elite schools are struggling to land roles.
In 2024, new grads made up 7% of hires—a 50% drop from pre-pandemic levels. While Ivy league schools have commanded the highest wage premiums overall over the past decade, the rush to build AI systems has shifted the hiring landscape significantly.
This graphic shows the top U.S. colleges for high-paying tech jobs, based on data from the Burning Glass Institute for 2013-2024.
Which Colleges Lead to High-Paying Tech Jobs?
For the rankings, Burning Glass analyzed the earnings of graduates in 2013 across the first 10 years of their career and compared their average wages to the median tech grad.
Below, we show the private U.S. institutions with the highest wage premiums overall:
| School | Average Annual Wage Premium Over the First 10 Years of Career |
|---|---|
| Harvard University | $45K |
| Princeton University | $43K |
| Stanford University | $43K |
| California Institute of Technology | $41K |
| Yale University | $39K |
| Brown University | $37K |
| Franklin W Olin College of Engineering | $34K |
| University of Pennsylvania | $32K |
| Duke University | $32K |
| Carnegie Mellon University | $32K |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | $32K |
| Amherst College | $31K |
| Columbia University in the City of New York | $31K |
| Cornell University | $31K |
| Williams College | $30K |
| Dartmouth College | $30K |
| Harvey Mudd College | $29K |
| Pomona College | $28K |
| Santa Clara University | $28K |
| University of San Francisco | $27K |
As we can see, Harvard tech grads earn the most on average, with a $45,019 wage premium.
Stanford, ranked third, is renowned for its close ties to Silicon Valley. Students benefit from research partnerships, product development collaborations, and opportunities to pitch ideas or gain hands-on experience with leading tech companies.
Similarly, California Institute of Technology (Caltech) has a history of collaboration with Big Tech. In 2021, Caltech and Amazon launch a quantum computing hub, driven by Caltech’s accomplishments in quantum sciences.
Overall, six of the top 20 private U.S. colleges were in California, followed by five in Massachusetts.
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