As University of Houston students return to campus for the spring semester, they can rest assured they’re making a good investment in their futures. The University of Houston has been included in the 2018 edition of “Colleges That Pay You Back: The 200 Schools That Give You the Best Bang for Your Tuition Buck,” released by The Princeton Review® earlier this week.
Comprehensive analysis of data by The Princeton Review® puts UH in the top 7 percent of the nation’s four-year colleges for giving students a return on investment (ROI). The education services company crunched more than 40 data points to tally the ROI ratings. The survey data, collected in 2016-17, addressed topics including academics, affordability, financial aid, career services, graduation rates, student debt and alumni support. It also factored in starting and mid-career salaries and job satisfaction data from PayScale.com.
“It is heartwarming to have our students look back at their academic careers and the financial investment they’ve made and say it was worth it. But it’s truly gratifying to know that it’s not just anecdotal— the data backs this up,” said Richard Walker, vice president for Student Affairs and Enrollment Services. “When students choose the University of Houston, it’s our mission to make sure they get an outstanding education that prepares them for a rewarding career.”
In the book’s profile of UH, students say the school’s financial aid packages are considerably higher than other institutions and tuition rates and fees are lower than competitor colleges. The Princeton Review cites the University’s “abundance of scholarships” and notes the Tier One Scholarship program, for first-time-in-college freshmen. It also quotes respondents saying UH is “instrumental in ‘helping bright kids from low-middle-income households build an optimistic future.’”
"The University of Houston stands out for its outstanding academics and affordability via generous financial aid to students with need and/or comparatively low sticker prices," said Robert Franek, The Princeton Review’s Editor-in-Chief and lead author of the book. "Students at UH also have access to extraordinary career services from their freshman year on, plus a lifetime of valuable alumni support."
According to the PayScale data collected on UH graduates, those with at least a bachelor’s degree have a median starting salary of $53,700 and a median mid-career salary of $99,900. Institutional data collect by The Princeton Review shows 51 percent of students borrow in some way to pay for school, and those who do can expect to pay a cumulative debt of $23,665.
In addition, The Princeton Review recently named the UH C.T. Bauer College of Business as one of the best business schools in the country to get an MBA and the UH Law Center as one of the top law schools.