20 Michigan Colleges Make Money’s 2020-21 ‘Best’ List

More than six months into the new coronavirus pandemic, colleges are struggling to resume in-person classes and, in some cases, reverting back to online courses only days into the new semester.

Such challenges raise a question: Is a college degree today worth the actual cost?

Enter Money magazine. The publication this week released its annual ranking of the best colleges for the money. The list, which includes 20 schools in Michigan, is meant to assuage the financial anxiety associated with the high price of college in the United States.

The 2020 list includes more than 700 colleges and universities.Colleges included in Money’s rankings had to meet certain criteria, such as having a graduation rate at or above the median and having at least 500 students. Colleges were then ranked based on 26 factors in three categories: quality of education, affordability and outcomes.

Each category is weighted equally in calculating the rankings.

See the full methodology used by Money.

The following colleges in Michigan were included on this year’s list:

• University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor, MI
• Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
• Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI
• Albion College, Albion, MI
• Ferris State University, Big Rapids, MI
• Hope College, Holland, MI
• Kalamazoo College, Kalamazoo, MI
• Calvin College, Grand Rapids, MI
• University of Detroit Mercy, Detroit, MI
• Madonna University, Livonia, MI
• Oakland University, Rochester Hills, MI
• Grand Valley State University, Allendale, MI
• Lake Superior State University, Sault Ste. Marie, MI
• Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, MI
• University of Michigan-Dearborn, Dearborn, MI
• Kettering University, Flint, MI
• Alma College, Alma, MI
• Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI
• College for Creative Studies, Detroit, MI
• Davenport University, Grand Rapids, MI

According to Money, the top 10 colleges for your money are:

1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts
2. Stanford University, Stanford, California.
3. Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey
4. University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
5. Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
6. University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia
7. Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
8. Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
9. University of California-San Diego
10. University of California-Davis

See the full rankings and read more about Money’s list.