How are the best colleges for Chemistry ranked?

By the median earnings of Chemistry graduates ~10 years after entry, from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard field-of-study data. It measures financial outcomes for that specific field at each school — not overall prestige or how hard it is to get in.

Does a higher rank mean the program is better, or easier to enter?

Neither on its own. It means graduates of that field tend to earn more — which reflects the field, the school, and who enrolls. Admission difficulty is separate: use each school's acceptance rate here, then run your personalized odds. Earnings also lag ~2 years and cover federally-aided graduates.

Why isn't every college listed?

We only rank schools where College Scorecard reports field-of-study earnings for Chemistry among the school's programs, so coverage grows as more institutions report. A missing school isn't a judgment — we just don't have verified Chemistry earnings for it yet.

Best colleges for Chemistry

Ranked by median Chemistry graduate earnings (~10 years after entry) from College Scorecard’s field-of-study data — the financial outcome for that specific field, not a prestige ranking. Source-cited; model your own odds and net price at each.

#	College	Location	Chemistry earnings	Net price	Accept.
1	Hamilton	Clinton, NY	$51,273	$28,985	14%
2	East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania	East Stroudsburg, PA	$50,856	$18,134	92%
3	Worcester State University	Worcester, MA	$49,644	$13,381	88%
4	Kutztown University of Pennsylvania	Kutztown, PA	$49,019	$21,331	91%
5	University of Detroit Mercy	Detroit, MI	$48,432	$15,232	75%
6	University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus	Denver, CO	$47,260	$11,900	75%
7	University of North Alabama	Florence, AL	$47,260	$12,170	87%
8	Lindenwood University	Saint Charles, MO	$46,673	$19,638	57%
9	University of Northern Colorado	Greeley, CO	$46,087	$17,760	86%
10	Texas A & M University-Corpus Christi	Corpus Christi, TX	$45,696	$15,225	89%
11	College of the Holy Cross	Worcester, MA	$45,175	$38,782	18%
12	Lebanon Valley College	Annville, PA	$44,942	$26,979	84%
13	Augsburg University	Minneapolis, MN	$44,384	$23,873	82%
14	University of New Haven	West Haven, CT	$44,356	$34,192	60%
15	Bridgewater State University	Bridgewater, MA	$44,170	$16,383	88%
16	Hamline University	Saint Paul, MN	$43,798	$20,744	88%
17	Keene State College	Keene, NH	$43,798	$17,887	90%
18	Smith	Northampton, MA	$42,682	$27,579	21%
19	John Carroll University	University Heights, OH	$42,682	$28,746	81%
20	William Paterson University of New Jersey	Wayne, NJ	$42,682	$18,745	90%
21	University of Wisconsin-Green Bay	Green Bay, WI	$42,123	$13,369	89%
22	Mount Saint Mary's University	Los Angeles, CA	$41,565	$21,413	73%
23	Kalamazoo College	Kalamazoo, MI	$41,565	$19,072	75%
24	Vassar	Poughkeepsie, NY	$41,025	$39,343	19%
25	University of Missouri-St Louis	Saint Louis, MO	$40,896	$15,071	63%
26	Beloit College	Beloit, WI	$40,821	$21,526	63%
27	University of Wisconsin-River Falls	River Falls, WI	$40,768	$14,054	82%
28	Wofford College	Spartanburg, SC	$40,485	$18,732	52%
29	Winthrop University	Rock Hill, SC	$40,368	$15,343	79%
30	University of North Carolina Wilmington	Wilmington, NC	$39,909	$20,109	64%
31	St Olaf College	Northfield, MN	$38,829	$23,874	48%
32	Stockton University	Galloway, NJ	$38,721	$20,670	89%
33	SUNY Oneonta	Oneonta, NY	$38,289	$19,158	70%
34	University of Puget Sound	Tacoma, WA	$38,289	$38,394	72%
35	SUNY Buffalo State University	Buffalo, NY	$38,289	$11,346	73%
36	Hanover College	Hanover, IN	$38,289	$21,829	84%
37	Princeton	Princeton, NJ	$37,568	$6,128	5%
38	University of Pittsburgh-Bradford	Bradford, PA	$37,424	$15,350	89%
39	Truman State University	Kirksville, MO	$37,208	$12,780	84%
40	Skidmore College	Saratoga Springs, NY	$36,848	$32,297	21%
41	Carleton	Northfield, MN	$36,141	$25,407	20%
42	SUNY College at Geneseo	Geneseo, NY	$36,141	$18,211	66%
43	Valdosta State University	Valdosta, GA	$35,420	$10,945	72%
44	The College of Wooster	Wooster, OH	$33,993	$23,458	60%
45	California Lutheran University	Thousand Oaks, CA	$33,993	$30,109	76%
46	University of Arkansas-Fort Smith	Fort Smith, AR	$33,993	$10,574	80%
47	Fort Lewis College	Durango, CO	$32,119	$17,296	77%
48	University of North Carolina Asheville	Asheville, NC	$31,133	$12,250	92%
49	Lawrence University	Appleton, WI	$28,960	$23,401	64%
50	Pacific University	Forest Grove, OR	$28,598	$35,273	90%

Quick answers

How are the best colleges for Chemistry ranked?: By the median earnings of Chemistry graduates ~10 years after entry, from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard field-of-study data. It measures financial outcomes for that specific field at each school — not overall prestige or how hard it is to get in.
Does a higher rank mean the program is better, or easier to enter?: Neither on its own. It means graduates of that field tend to earn more — which reflects the field, the school, and who enrolls. Admission difficulty is separate: use each school's acceptance rate here, then run your personalized odds. Earnings also lag ~2 years and cover federally-aided graduates.
Why isn't every college listed?: We only rank schools where College Scorecard reports field-of-study earnings for Chemistry among the school's programs, so coverage grows as more institutions report. A missing school isn't a judgment — we just don't have verified Chemistry earnings for it yet.

Model my odds at these →Other majors →

Earnings are field-of-study medians from College Scorecard and lag ~2 years; they cover federally-aided graduates, not every student, and are not a guarantee of individual outcomes.

These outputs are estimates from a baseline model — not guarantees of admission, cost, or outcome.