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Program ranking · CIP 52.09 bachelor's · College Scorecard · Mar-Jul 2026 retrievals

Best Colleges for Hospitality

Using U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard field-of-study data retrieved March-July 2026, these colleges rank highest on median earnings for Hospitality (CIP 52.09) bachelor's completers. Rankings use earnings only - not prestige, selectivity, or editorial judgment - and require at least 25 completers so tiny suppressed cohorts do not dominate the list.

$112,289
Highest hospitality earnings
82
Colleges ranked
$30,004
#82 cutoff

The list in one line

Every college on this list reports at least $30,004 median earnings for Hospitality bachelor's (CIP 52.09) completers. Cornell University leads at $112,289.

According to the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard.

$112,289
#1 - Cornell University
$30,004
#82 - the cutoff to make this list
25+
completers required per school
271
US schools offering this CIP

Earnings are field-of-study medians for federally aided completers who were working and not enrolled; see methodology for horizon and lag details.

Top 15 hospitality programs by median completer earnings

Hospitality bachelor's (CIP 52.09) · higher is higher early-career pay

median earnings

What this shows Hospitality medians mix hotel, food-service, and event roles - debt still matters when tip-heavy and seasonal markets swing pay.

Source U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard Field of Study As of Mar-Jul 2026 retrievals

The full top 82

# School Name StateMedian EarningsMedian DebtCompleters
1 Cornell University NY $112,289 $13,086 226
2 New York University NY $84,375 $17,905 30
3 Boston University MA $82,302 $23,250 72
4 George Washington University DC $75,683 $19,250 31
5 University of Denver CO $75,118 $21,923 27
6 Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University VA $72,817 $24,500 54
7 University of Delaware DE $71,102 $22,850 55
8 University of Massachusetts-Amherst MA $70,916 $21,500 100
9 San Diego State University CA $70,113 $15,000 64
10 Michigan State University MI $69,651 $21,815 154
11 Washington State University WA $66,874 $23,207 210
12 University of New Hampshire-Main Campus NH $66,046 $27,000 30
13 California State University-East Bay CA $65,655 $18,579 46
14 San Francisco State University CA $65,510 $14,125 53
15 James Madison University VA $65,016 $19,875 122
16 Arizona State University Campus Immersion AZ $64,315 $15,000 40
17 College of Charleston SC $64,154 $23,323 39
18 Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus PA $63,798 $23,455 134
19 Auburn University AL $63,419 $24,500 40
20 George Mason University VA $62,727 $20,500 46
21 Florida State University FL $62,673 $17,404 205
22 Colorado State University-Fort Collins CO $62,556 $18,500 50
23 University of Missouri-Columbia MO $61,441 $22,000 48
24 Endicott College MA $60,969 $23,250 35
25 Temple University PA $60,347 $24,554 57
26 University of Hawaii at Manoa HI $60,157 $19,261 78
27 Florida Gulf Coast University FL $60,011 $19,500 105
28 Georgia State University GA $59,089 $18,750 33
29 Purdue University-Main Campus IN $58,861 $18,916 86
30 Northern Arizona University AZ $58,857 $18,750 147
31 The University of Tennessee-Knoxville TN $58,854 $21,500 34
32 University of Nevada-Las Vegas NV $58,719 $18,750 462
33 Grand Valley State University MI $58,413 $25,500 80
34 Kansas State University KS $58,282 $24,250 40
35 Culinary Institute of America NY $58,165 $26,500 225
36 California State University-Long Beach CA $57,927 $12,500 77
37 Roosevelt University IL $57,617 $18,283 27
38 Metropolitan State University of Denver CO $57,312 $16,858 50
39 University of North Texas TX $57,255 $20,551 97
40 Texas Tech University TX $57,221 $21,500 48
41 California State Polytechnic University-Pomona CA $57,114 $15,000 252
42 University of South Carolina-Columbia SC $56,688 $21,500 166
43 Florida International University FL $56,667 $16,398 622
44 University of Wisconsin-Stout WI $56,451 $24,000 46
45 Central Michigan University MI $56,314 $28,937 62
46 Utah Valley University UT $56,252 $23,625 44
47 Kent State University at Kent OH $56,143 $25,000 32
48 Johnson & Wales University-Providence RI $55,790 $25,768 93
49 Johnson & Wales University-Online RI $55,790 $25,768 62
50 East Carolina University NC $55,541 $25,252 56
51 Iowa State University IA $55,491 $20,000 116
52 University of Central Florida FL $54,921 $18,250 671
53 Florida Atlantic University FL $54,635 $20,000 54
54 Texas A&M University-College Station TX $54,251 $15,781 122
55 Stockton University NJ $53,796 $17,750 56
56 Missouri State University-Springfield MO $53,789 $24,728 51
57 Indiana University-Indianapolis IN $53,784 $20,500 113
58 University of Nebraska-Lincoln NE $53,777 $21,412 58
59 Indiana University of Pennsylvania PA $53,551 $27,000 36
60 University of Houston TX $53,344 $19,500 216
61 The University of Alabama AL $53,180 $22,662 90
62 Ohio State University-Main Campus OH $53,039 $20,500 49
63 Coastal Carolina University SC $50,864 $23,250 25
64 Western Kentucky University KY $50,712 $23,527 29
65 California State University-Northridge CA $50,644 $15,000 39
66 CUNY New York City College of Technology NY $50,492 $10,828 110
67 Ferris State University MI $49,983 $26,622 26
68 Western Carolina University NC $49,798 $25,657 34
69 Stephen F Austin State University TX $49,776 $23,250 25
70 Grand Canyon University AZ $49,703 $23,181 53
71 New Mexico State University-Main Campus NM $49,444 $20,973 26
72 SUNY Buffalo State University NY $48,267 $15,625 29
73 SUNY College of Technology at Delhi NY $48,006 $20,691 35
74 Oklahoma State University-Main Campus OK $47,756 $21,122 44
75 American Public University System WV $46,000 $31,334 42
76 University of South Carolina Beaufort SC $45,953 $23,641 34
77 Northwestern State University of Louisiana LA $44,227 $19,500 31
78 Monroe University NY $43,575 $24,928 83
79 University of South Alabama AL $41,515 $18,125 32
80 University of Puerto Rico-Carolina PR $36,742 - 59
81 Universidad del Sagrado Corazon PR $30,051 $9,091 27
82 Universidad Ana G. Mendez-Carolina Campus PR $30,004 $14,141 36

About This Ranking

Schools are ranked by College Scorecard field-of-study median earnings for Hospitality (CIP 52.09) bachelor's completers. Only operating schools with at least 25 completers and a published median are included. Ties break toward larger completer cohorts. For the full program profile - including every reporting school and national distribution - see Hospitality (bachelor's). Methodology lives on our methodology page.

Caveats and limitations

"Best" here means highest reported median earnings for the stated CIP scope - not teaching quality, licensure pass rates, clinical placement strength, or fit for any one student. This list covers Hospitality Administration/Management (CIP 52.09) bachelor's programs - tourism-adjacent and culinary codes are ranked separately when demand warrants.

Figures cover federally aided completers only, use Treasury-linked earnings, and describe a lagged cohort. Regional pay scales and graduate-school paths both move the median without proving a causal school effect.

This ranking is for informational purposes only and does not constitute academic or career advice. Earnings do not predict any individual graduate's outcome.

Every figure on PlainCollege is rendered directly from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard data, no number is typed in by an editor. Rankings are computed directly from College Scorecard field-of-study data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Review the public data changelog. Data current as of Mar-Jul 2026 retrievals.