It's can be difficult choosing the right college.
There are so many factors to consider, from school size to location to cost. And then there's the matter of what sort of earnings a graduate can expect once turned loose on the job market.
Recently we looked at PayScale's rankings for more than a thousand universities and other institutions of higher learning by the median pay its graduates earn at the midpoint of their careers. Today we turn our turn our attention the schools at the bottom of the list. (For the top of the list, check out Top 13 Colleges Whose Grads Earn the Most: 2015).
It's interesting to note that the despite the lower pay compared with grads of the schools at the top of the list, those making far less were not always significantly more dissatisfied with their jobs. That is reflected in PayScale's job meaning quotient, a measure of how many respondents said their occupations made the world a better place.
PayScale looked at institutions that offer two-year, four-year and graduate degrees. We looked at the highest ranked four-year colleges offering bachelor's degrees among the more than 1,000 colleges and universities studied in the PayScale report. Data was collected from employees who completed PayScale's survey.
Check out the 13 Colleges Whose Grads Earn the Least:
13. Fresno Pacific University (Fresno, California)
Early Career Median Pay: $40,000
Mid-Career Median Pay: $51,100
% High Job Meaning: 50%
12. Ashford University (Clinton, Iowa)
Early Career Median Pay: $38,300
Mid-Career Median Pay: $50,800
% High Job Meaning: 60%
11 (tie). Cornerstone University (Grand Rapids, Michigan)
Early Career Median Pay: $36,200
Mid-Career Median Pay: $50,700
% High Job Meaning: 61%
11 (tie). University of Montevallo (Montevallo, Alabama)
Early Career Median Pay: $32,300
Mid-Career Median Pay: $50,700
% High Job Meaning: 56%
9. Miami Dade College (Florida)
Early Career Median Pay: $43,800
Mid-Career Median Pay: $50,600
% High Job Meaning: 58%
8 (tie). Averett University (Danville, Virginia)
Early Career Median Pay: $40,400
Mid-Career Median Pay: $50,100
% High Job Meaning: 49%
