<p>Your question is “How is it #1 ROI?”. This is the methodology information for the 2013 ROI list where Mudd was ranked #1:</p>
<p>"PayScale economists evaluated data from more than 1,000 institutions and compared costs to median alumni earnings over a 30-year period. They based the schools net ROI on the difference between the median pay for those with a bachelors degree who graduated from 1983 to 2012 and the median pay for those with a high school degree who graduated between 2012 and 1977. The costs of obtaining the college degree and lost wages from time spent in school are deducted. </p>
<p>HMCs 30-year ROI was calculated at $2,217,000. California Institute of Technology ranked second in the report, followed by Polytechnic Institute of New York University. Massachusetts Institute of Technology ranked fourth, and State University of New York Maritime College ranked fifth."</p>
<p>I don’t think you would have any argument with the rigor, assuming you are looking for a very rigorous program. The core is notoriously difficult (first semester is pass-fail, I suspect partly to keep everyone from going crazy about the lack of grade inflation). Average GPA has crept up a bit in recent years, but they told us at accepted students weekend it is currently 3.3. They have only had a very small number of students (7? 8?) in the history of the school graduate with a 4.0. Students take 5 classes at a time (16-17 credits is a normal load, I think).</p>
<p>If you are interested in Mudd, I’d suggest you go visit to get a flavor for the campus. You can visit Cal Tech, Berkely, and Stanford in the same few days, see what you prefer.</p>