MAJORS · 18 OF 19 BY ROI

Is a computer and information sciences degree worth it?

On average, yes — the mean lifetime ROI is +$936,339. But the spread is the real story.

MEAN LIFETIME ROI · FREOPP 2021 · COHORT-WEIGHTED

+$936,339

across 1,140 bachelor’s programs · 123,543 graduates

MEDIAN GRADUATE

+$874K

MIDDLE 50% LAND BETWEEN

+$605K ⟷ +$1.18M

NEVER BREAK EVEN

2.5%

MEDIAN BREAK-EVEN AGE

27

ADJUSTED FOR REAL COMPLETION RATES

+$587K

IF YOU DROP OUT

−$120K

The biggest fields inside Computer and Information Sciences

  1. Computer and Information Sciences, General. 51,363 grads +$1.00M
  2. Computer Science. 32,289 grads +$1.16M
  3. Information Science/Studies. 13,528 grads +$880K
  4. Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. 8,361 grads +$743K
  5. Computer Software and Media Applications. 6,760 grads +$113K

Mean lifetime ROI per field, cohort-weighted. A category average hides this spread — and the per-school spread inside each field is wider still.

Questions

Is a computer and information sciences degree worth it?
On average yes — across 1,140 U.S. bachelor’s programs (FREOPP 2021, cohort-weighted), the mean lifetime ROI for Computer and Information Sciences is +$936,339 and the median is +$873,705. 2.5% of graduates in this category never break even on the degree. The honest answer depends heavily on the specific program and school: the middle half of graduates land between +$604,829 and +$1,183,459.
How long until a computer and information sciences degree pays off?
Among Computer and Information Sciences programs that do break even, the median graduate crosses into positive ROI at age 27 (FREOPP 2021). 2.5% of graduates in the category are in programs that never break even at all.
Does the school matter for a computer and information sciences major?
Enormously. The middle 50% of Computer and Information Sciences graduates span +$604,829 to +$1,183,459 — a +$579K spread within one major. The same field can be a strong trade at one school and a losing one at another, which is why the per-school number matters more than the category average.

↓ Download the data (CSV) · All 19 categories with full statistics. Free to cite with attribution. · Methodology

Cite this:

LE TEEN (2026). “Computer and Information Sciences: lifetime ROI statistics.” Data: FREOPP 2021. https://le-teen.com/majors/computer-and-information-sciences