Two Virginia schools make list of colleges with highest-earning graduates

Two Virginia schools, Virginia Military Institute and the University of Virginia, have made a list of 25 public colleges and universities with the highest mid-career salaries.

VMI ranked 11th on the list compiled by Forbes magazine while U.Va. was 24th.

Graduates of Lexington-based VMI recorded mid-career earnings of $108,000. At U.Va., in Charlottesville, that number was $97,100.

Forbes noted that VMI, founded in 1839, is the oldest state-supported military college in the country.

The magazine also pointed to the fact that U.Va.’s graduating class this year included two Rhodes Scholars, two Marshall Scholars and five Fulbright Scholars.

Leading the list was SUNY Maritime College in Throggs Neck, N.Y., whose graduates had mid-career earnings of $144,000.

One of six state maritime academies in the U.S., SUNY Maritime College offers 11 undergraduate majors, including five engineering programs.

Other schools in the top 10 included: United States Naval Academy; United States Merchant Marine Academy; United States Military Academy; United States Air Force Academy; Colorado School of Mines; Georgia Institute of Technology; University of California, Berkeley; United States Coast Guard Academy and University of California, San Diego.