Bachelor's · Manchester, New Hampshire

Is Computer Science at Southern New Hampshire University worth it?

High confidence High confidence: 100+ graduates behind the earnings figures.

The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans

Pays back in time: graduates typically recover the cost in about 3.6 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $78,872; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $123,802; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $25,784; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $156k (likely $156k – $203k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $78k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in NH; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 3.6 years (likely 3.3–4.3); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: $357k (likely $247k – $424k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $1.28M (likely $1.07M – $1.50M); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 42%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26