Degree Dividend
Sourced from federal dataEvery figure datedNo rankings for sale

Best colleges in Maine, ranked by ROI

All 27 Maine institutions we profile, ranked by payback years — total net cost divided by earnings above the $48,360 high-school baseline. Federal net price and earnings; payback is our math. (Scorecard, 2026.)

$17,180
Median net price / yr
Scorecard, 2026
$44,433
Median earnings, 10 yrs
Scorecard, 2026
8 yrs
Median payback
Our math, 2026
27
Colleges ranked
degreedividend.com
Maine colleges by payback (best first)
#CollegeNet price/yrEarnings 10yPayback
1Bowdoin College$14,398$82,7351.7 yrs
2Maine College of Health Professions$26,312$79,8401.7 yrs
3Colby College$17,180$80,4902.1 yrs
4Maine Maritime Academy$23,414$89,9642.3 yrs
5Bates College$29,351$69,4985.6 yrs
6Saint Joseph's College of Maine$27,555$59,04510.3 yrs
7University of Maine at Fort Kent$7,482$51,07711 yrs
8University of New England$38,107$55,92120.2 yrs
9University of Southern Maine$13,596$49,95834 yrs
10University of Maine$17,510$48,653239 yrs
11York County Community College$5,875$44,873no payback
12Northern Maine Community College$7,181$43,348no payback
13Central Maine Community College$6,975$42,448no payback
14Thomas College$18,885$44,991no payback
15University of Maine at Farmington$16,857$44,433no payback
16Husson University$21,005$45,025no payback
17Eastern Maine Community College$8,928$41,704no payback
18Southern Maine Community College$11,086$41,661no payback
19University of Maine at Presque Isle$7,035$40,956no payback
20University of Maine at Augusta$10,924$40,342no payback
21Kennebec Valley Community College$3,910$36,035no payback
22College of the Atlantic$25,184$40,264no payback
23Unity Environmental University$19,104$37,852no payback
24Washington County Community College$5,149$34,407no payback
25Maine College of Art & Design$38,338$40,778no payback
26Beal University$40,109$35,639no payback
27Spa Tech Institute-Westbrook$29,953$27,803no payback

College Scorecard (2026), institution-level · ranking and payback are our math. Payback uses institution-wide earnings; a specific major can rank very differently.