by our College Data Analytics Team
[Value](/majors/engineering-technologies/energy-systems/) degree programs vary widely in price and payoff across the country. A high-value program keeps cost low while graduates go on to earn well.
For its 2026 best-value ranking, College Factual looked at 14 schools to find the best return on investment for value students.
What’s on this page:
If you want to know which schools deliver the best value for the value degrees they offer, see the list below.
Indian River State College earned the #1 spot for value among value schools in Florida. Indian River State College is a very large public school located in the suburb of Fort Pierce. Expect in-state tuition and fees of around $2,764, with out-of-state students paying around $10,201. Students borrow a median of $10,492 to complete the value program here. Early-career value graduates make about $44,082. That is a strong return on a $10,492 median debt.
The ranking above is published by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2026 edition. The methodology weighs the cost of a degree against the earnings graduates go on to achieve, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 14 schools evaluated.
*Averages shown above reflect the top 1 ranked schools only.
More about our data sources and methodologies.