2021 Best Colleges in Missouri Badge

2021 Best Colleges in Missouri by Salary Score

By the GradReports team | Updated 3/1/2021

We've ranked the top 25 universities in Missouri based on Salary Score. Students can use this list to see how colleges stack up in terms of alumni salary by major for a bachelor's degree. We determined Salary Score by comparing median alumni salaries for each program to data on the same programs from other universities. We then compiled these program scores into an overall Salary Score for each school. A high Salary Score indicates that a school produces alumni who tend to earn more than graduates with the same major across all schools. It's helpful to keep in mind that the cost of living differs in each state, so salaries might vary to reflect this. For example, Missouri is the sixth most affordable state by cost of living, so alumni may have lower salaries in line with lower living expenses. Even with a lower cost of living, however, the top 5 schools in Missouri all have higher Salary Scores than the median for colleges and universities in the U.S. Missouri's top school, Washington University in St. Louis, ranks #39 for best universities in the country by bachelor's degree Salary Score.

To be considered for our state rankings, schools must offer and provide data for at least 8 bachelor's programs. You can click on a school's name to view individual program scores. Read our methodology to learn more about how schools were ranked.

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Salary Scores based on data reported by the U.S. Department of Education
Rank School Location Annual Tuition Salary Score
#1 #1 Washington University in St. Louis St. Louis St. Louis $55,292 90.06
#2 #2 Park University Parkville Parkville $11,190 64.06
#3 #3 Missouri University of Science and Technology Rolla Rolla $9,936 62.48
#4 #4 University of Missouri Columbia Columbia $10,477 61.94
#5 #5 Columbia College Columbia Columbia $23,498 56.67
#6 #6 Maryville University St. Louis St. Louis $28,470 50.20
#7 #7 University of Missouri - Kansas City Kansas City Kansas City $9,915 48.68
#8 #8 Lindenwood University Saint Charles Saint Charles $18,100 47.37
#9 #9 Saint Louis University - Main Campus St. Louis St. Louis $45,424 47.13
#10 #10 Fontbonne University St. Louis (and 1 other) St. Louis (and 1 other) $27,260 46.65
#11 #11 University of Missouri at Saint Louis St. Louis St. Louis $10,170 46.49
#12 #12 Webster University St. Louis St. Louis $28,700 45.78
#13 #13 William Woods University Fulton Fulton $24,830 43.33
#14 #14 Truman State University Kirksville Kirksville $8,120 43.17
#15 #15 Rockhurst University Kansas City Kansas City $38,760 41.96
#16 #16 Northwest Missouri State University Maryville Maryville $8,238 41.53
#17 #17 Missouri Southern State University Joplin Joplin $6,803 37.71
#18 #18 University of Central Missouri Warrensburg Warrensburg $7,969 36.09
#19 #19 Avila University Kansas City Kansas City $20,500 33.83
#20 #20 Missouri Western State University St. Joseph St. Joseph $8,225 32.82
#21 #21 Southeast Missouri State University Cape Girardeau Cape Girardeau $7,800 31.81
#22 #22 Drury University Springfield Springfield $29,665 30.99
#23 #23 Culver-Stockton College Canton Canton $27,205 26.11
#24 #24 Missouri Baptist University St. Louis St. Louis $28,220 25.43
#25 #25 Missouri State University Springfield Springfield $7,588 25.17