How does the 10-year financial return of a bachelor's degree vary across Hawaiʻi's colleges and universities?
Workforce Understory Episode: Episode Two — Understanding Underemployment
Geography: Statewide
Topic: Higher education, degree value, return on investment, and equitable access
The takeaway
The estimated 10-year financial return of a bachelor’s degree varies substantially across Hawaiʻi’s colleges and universities.
UH Mānoa and UH West Oʻahu have the highest estimated returns, at approximately $201,000 and $202,000 respectively. BYU–Hawaiʻi and UH Hilo fall in the middle, at approximately $145,000 and $146,000.
Chaminade University and Hawaiʻi Pacific University have lower estimated 10-year returns, at approximately $108,000 and $119,000.
The estimated financial return of a bachelor’s degree can differ by nearly two to one depending on the institution a student attends.
What this visualization shows
This visualization compares the estimated 10-year return on investment of earning a bachelor’s degree at selected colleges and universities in Hawaiʻi.
Return on investment provides one way to examine the economic value of higher education. Rather than looking only at graduates’ earnings, it considers those financial benefits in relation to the costs associated with earning the degree.
The comparison reveals substantial variation among institutions. The two highest estimated returns are associated with public University of Hawaiʻi campuses, while the selected private institutions show lower estimated returns over the same period.
Those differences may reflect several factors, including tuition and fees, financial aid, time required to complete a degree, student borrowing, the programs students pursue, graduation rates, and the earnings graduates receive after leaving college.
The institution-level averages provide an important starting point, but they do not describe every student’s experience. Returns may vary considerably by major, occupation, family income, financial aid package, completion status, and the amount of debt a student assumes.
The visualization therefore helps identify differences worth investigating. It should not be interpreted as a definitive judgment about the value of any individual institution or degree.
Why this matters
Students often make college decisions with limited information about how educational costs may compare with their future earnings.
Institutional reputation, location, campus culture, available programs, family expectations, financial aid, and admissions decisions can all shape where someone enrolls. But students may not have access to clear information about the long-term financial implications of those choices.
A difference of nearly $100,000 in estimated 10-year return could have meaningful consequences for a graduate’s ability to repay debt, afford housing, support a family, build savings, and remain in Hawaiʻi.
The variation also raises equity concerns. Students with greater financial resources may have more flexibility to absorb a lower financial return or pursue programs based on goals other than earnings. Students from lower-income families may face greater consequences when educational costs are high and post-college earnings are limited.
At the same time, institution-wide averages can conceal major differences among programs. A university with a lower overall return may offer particular degrees with strong economic outcomes, while a high-return institution may still contain programs whose graduates struggle financially.
This evidence invites Hawaiʻi to ask:
Do students have the information and access they need to choose educational pathways that align with both their goals and their economic circumstances?
Evidence:
Questions this visualization helps answer
Which Hawaiʻi institutions have the highest estimated bachelor’s-degree return on investment?
How do estimated returns compare between public and private institutions?
How large is the financial difference between the highest- and lowest-return institutions shown?
Does attending a higher-cost institution necessarily lead to stronger long-term earnings?
How much can the institution a student attends affect the estimated economic value of a bachelor’s degree?
Curiosity:
Questions this visualization raises
How much does return on investment vary by major or academic program within each institution?
Which degree programs produce the strongest and weakest financial returns?
How do tuition, financial aid, student debt, and time to completion affect the results?
Are lower returns driven primarily by higher educational costs, lower graduate earnings, lower completion rates, or some combination of factors?
How do outcomes differ for students who transfer between institutions?
Which campuses serve students who could benefit most from access to higher-return programs?
Are high-return programs available to students across all islands, or are they concentrated on Oʻahu?
How does geography affect access to institutions and programs with stronger economic outcomes?
Do students receive clear information about program-level costs, debt, completion rates, and expected earnings before enrolling?
How do returns differ by family income, race, gender, age, or first-generation college status?
Do graduates remain in Hawaiʻi, and how does migration affect the estimated return?
How do nonfinancial benefits—such as personal growth, civic participation, cultural connection, and preparation for public-service careers—fit alongside financial return?
How do certificate, associate-degree, apprenticeship, and other non-bachelor’s pathways compare?
Are institutional and program-level returns improving or declining over time?
Youth Perspective
Contributor:
Role:
Responding to:
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Integer placerat leo sit amet efficitur lobortis. Nulla sagittis orci in orci fermentum, id ornare urna dictum. Donec dapibus suscipit tortor, et ornare velit dictum id. Mauris libero quam, eleifend a lobortis in, facilisis at odio. Praesent sit amet ullamcorper purus, a pellentesque augue. Nullam enim purus, accumsan ut lobortis ut, venenatis id nisi. Mauris leo nunc, cursus vitae dui nec, porttitor gravida sem. Nunc varius metus sit amet mi porta blandit. Nam a lectus enim. Class aptent taciti sociosqu ad litora torquent per conubia nostra, per inceptos himenaeos. Mauris leo erat.
