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Best Degrees Under $50K Tuition (2026)

62 programs ranked · Updated 2026

Top programs at schools charging under $50K for four years. Affordable excellence.

Programs Ranked
62
Avg Earnings
$81,446/yr
Avg DW Score
87/100
#1 Program
Registered Nursing & Nursing Administration
California State University-Stanislaus

Best Degrees Under $50K Tuition

Click any row for full AI scenario analysis, earnings projections, and career path breakdown.

# Program DW Score Earnings Tuition (4yr) AI Risk ROI
1 Registered Nursing & Nursing Administration
California State University-Stanislaus · Turlock, CA 		91
88–91 		$119,356/yr High 38.2x $31,304
2 Registered Nursing & Nursing Administration
California State University-San Bernardino · San Bernardino, CA 		91
87–91 		$93,142/yr High 34.7x $30,700
3 Registered Nursing & Nursing Administration
California State University-Chico · Chico, CA 		91
88–91 		$113,181/yr High 36.4x $32,256
4 Registered Nursing & Nursing Administration
California State University-Dominguez Hills · Carson, CA 		91
88–91 		$110,626/yr High 42.5x $28,256
5 Registered Nursing & Nursing Administration
California State University-Fresno · Fresno, CA 		91
88–91 		$96,890/yr High 39.6x $27,920
6 Computer and Information Sciences, General
University of Florida · Gainesville, FL 		91
84–92 		$90,651/yr Very High 49.2x $25,524
7 Computer and Information Sciences, General
Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus · Atlanta, GA 		91
85–92 		$105,137/yr Very High 32.0x $47,056
8 Computer and Information Sciences, General
University of New Mexico-Main Campus · Albuquerque, NM 		91
84–92 		$89,498/yr Very High 34.8x $32,460
9 Computer and Information Sciences, General
Stony Brook University · Stony Brook, NY 		91
84–92 		$90,673/yr Very High 32.0x $42,240
10 Computer and Information Sciences, General
The University of Texas at Austin · Austin, TX 		91
85–92 		$111,587/yr Very High 27.4x $46,712
11 Building/Construction Finishing
Utah Valley University · Orem, UT 		91
91–90 		$74,527/yr Low 39.3x $25,080
12 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods
University of Wisconsin-Madison · Madison, WI 		91
86–92 		$83,260/yr Very High 27.3x $44,820
13 Computer Science
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill · Chapel Hill, NC 		90
83–91 		$90,293/yr Very High 33.8x $35,956
14 Computer Science
Brigham Young University · Provo, UT 		90
83–91 		$90,625/yr Very High 47.1x $25,984
15 Finance and Financial Management Services
Brigham Young University · Provo, UT 		90
87–92 		$83,876/yr Very High 44.7x $25,984
16 Computer Science
University of Utah · Salt Lake City, UT 		90
82–91 		$90,282/yr Very High 30.2x $37,260
17 Computer Science
Purdue University-Main Campus · West Lafayette, IN 		90
83–91 		$94,786/yr Very High 36.4x $39,968
18 Computer Science
California State University-Chico · Chico, CA 		89
82–90 		$81,021/yr Very High 37.8x $32,256
19 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods
University of Nebraska-Lincoln · Lincoln, NE 		89
85–90 		$75,137/yr Very High 26.0x $40,432
20 Business Administration
Bismarck State College · Bismarck, ND 		89
85–90 		$100,668/yr High 61.8x $20,780
21 Finance and Financial Management Services
The University of Texas at Austin · Austin, TX 		89
86–91 		$81,844/yr Very High 23.9x $46,712
22 Building/Construction Finishing
The University of Texas at San Antonio · San Antonio, TX 		89
90–88 		$71,202/yr Low 24.8x $35,964
23 Finance and Financial Management Services
University of Florida · Gainesville, FL 		88
85–89 		$70,663/yr Very High 38.9x $25,524
24 Finance and Financial Management Services
University of Maryland-College Park · College Park, MD 		88
86–90 		$75,689/yr Very High 24.3x $46,020
25 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods
University of Maryland-College Park · College Park, MD 		88
84–89 		$72,304/yr Very High 22.9x $46,020
26 Finance and Financial Management Services
Binghamton University · Vestal, NY 		88
86–90 		$73,598/yr Very High 27.0x $41,452
27 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods
Purdue University-Main Campus · West Lafayette, IN 		88
84–89 		$70,903/yr Very High 24.3x $39,968
28 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods
Arizona State University Campus Immersion · Tempe, AZ 		87
84–88 		$73,618/yr Very High 20.0x $48,204
29 Computer Engineering
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo · San Luis Obispo, CA 		87
82–89 		$111,560/yr Very High 32.0x $44,300
30 Computer Engineering
University of Florida · Gainesville, FL 		87
80–88 		$87,949/yr Very High 44.0x $25,524
31 Computer Engineering
Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus · Atlanta, GA 		87
80–88 		$93,629/yr Very High 26.9x $47,056
32 Accounting and Related Services
Binghamton University · Vestal, NY 		87
83–89 		$74,151/yr Very High 22.9x $41,452
33 Business Administration
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill · Chapel Hill, NC 		87
83–87 		$85,618/yr High 33.9x $35,956
34 Computer Engineering
Brigham Young University · Provo, UT 		87
81–89 		$88,785/yr Very High 55.5x $25,984
35 Accounting and Related Services
Brigham Young University · Provo, UT 		87
84–89 		$68,393/yr Very High 40.3x $25,984
36 Construction Management
California State University-Chico · Chico, CA 		86
83–87 		$89,075/yr High 35.2x $32,256
37 Computer Engineering
California State University-Fresno · Fresno, CA 		86
79–87 		$75,101/yr Very High 46.0x $27,920
38 Accounting and Related Services
California State University-Northridge · Northridge, CA 		86
83–88 		$68,904/yr Very High 30.8x $28,380
39 Computer/Information Technology Administration
University of Maryland Global Campus · Adelphi, MD 		86
81–88 		$73,797/yr Very High 31.2x $31,968
40 Accounting and Related Services
University of Maryland-College Park · College Park, MD 		86
82–88 		$69,821/yr Very High 20.6x $46,020
41 Information Science/Studies
Utah Valley University · Orem, UT 		86
80–87 		$79,918/yr Very High 39.5x $25,080
42 General Sales
Western Governors University · Salt Lake City, UT 		86
84–87 		$93,151/yr High 29.3x $33,200
43 Accounting and Related Services
University of Florida · Gainesville, FL 		85
82–87 		$65,144/yr Very High 33.7x $25,524
44 Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences
University of Hawaii at Hilo · Hilo, HI 		85
83–86 		$63,776/yr High 44.1x $31,352
45 Construction Management
Boise State University · Boise, ID 		85
82–86 		$77,109/yr High 30.7x $35,128
46 Information Science/Studies
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill · Chapel Hill, NC 		85
79–86 		$75,834/yr Very High 27.5x $35,956
47 Business Administration
Brigham Young University · Provo, UT 		85
80–85 		$71,163/yr High 37.3x $25,984
48 Computer Systems Networking
Weber State University · Ogden, UT 		85
79–86 		$71,941/yr Very High 32.9x $25,564
49 Construction Management
Central Washington University · Ellensburg, WA 		85
82–86 		$81,666/yr High 27.2x $36,768
50 Computer/Information Technology Administration
Kennesaw State University · Kennesaw, GA 		85
79–86 		$60,691/yr Very High 44.9x $23,144

Methodology

Programs are ranked by DegreeWorth Score (0–100), combining graduate earnings, AI automation resilience, job market demand, and tuition ROI. Earnings data is from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.

Data: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (earnings, debt), Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024–2034 (employment projections), OpenAI GPTs-are-GPTs research (AI task exposure), Felten et al. AIOE. Last updated 2025.