20 Agriculture colleges in the West with strong social mobility outcomes. Average earnings: $62,935.
We started with Agriculture programs scoring 60th percentile or above for mobility—schools that actually serve low-income students. Then we ranked by earnings. The result: 22 programs that prove accessibility and strong outcomes aren't mutually exclusive.
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo leads the rankings, producing Agriculture graduates earning $90,768 while maintaining a 95th percentile mobility score. The earnings range spans $53,263 to $90,768, demonstrating that schools serving low-income students deliver competitive outcomes across the West.
California State University-Fresno serves 56% Pell Grant recipients—students from families earning under $60,000—while still producing graduates earning $61,244. Better yet: graduates face an excellent payment burden, keeping most of their earnings. Brigham Young University exemplifies the double win with 98th percentile mobility and just 5.5% payment burden.
Earnings: $90,768 | Mobility: 95th percentile
56% Pell students with $61,244 earnings
5.5% payment burden | Excellent - payment under 8% of discretionary
11.1% family burden | Excellent - payment under 8% of discretionary
| Rank | School | Graduate Earnings | Student Debt | Student GPS | Parent Debt | Parent GPS | Mobility |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | $90,768 | $18,500 | Excellent | $35,000 | Manageable | 94th percentile mobility | |
| #2 | $80,838 | $13,000 | Excellent | $25,733 | Manageable | 99th percentile mobility | |
| #3 | Brigham Young UniversityPrivate | $75,790 | $11,069 | Excellent | $9,699 | Excellent | 98th percentile mobility |
| #4 | $71,902 | $16,000 | Excellent | $15,000 | Manageable | 99th percentile mobility | |
| #5 | $68,905 | $19,500 | Excellent | $29,968 | Manageable | 92th percentile mobility | |
| #6 | $68,396 | — | — | — | — | 95th percentile mobility | |
| #7 | $64,172 | $16,552 | Excellent | $17,585 | Good | 95th percentile mobility | |
| #8 | Oregon State UniversityPublic | $64,010 | $21,221 | Excellent | $28,923 | Challenging | 95th percentile mobility |
| #9 | $63,188 | $13,540 | Excellent | $12,700 | Good | 95th percentile mobility | |
| #10 | $61,244 | $14,505 | Excellent | $12,050 | Good | 98th percentile mobility | |
| #11 | $60,614 | $18,922 | Good | $26,150 | Challenging | 88th percentile mobility | |
| #12 | $60,543 | $20,000 | Excellent | $36,000 | Challenging | 93th percentile mobility | |
| #13 | University Of ArizonaPublic | $59,979 | $19,620 | Excellent | $30,126 | High | 97th percentile mobility |
| #14 | $59,211 | — | — | — | — | 100th percentile mobility | |
| #15 | $57,624 | $18,500 | Manageable | $30,988 | High | 91th percentile mobility | |
| #16 | University Of WyomingPublic | $56,880 | $18,000 | Good | $16,000 | Manageable | 80th percentile mobility |
| #17 | University Of IdahoPublic | $54,670 | $21,982 | Manageable | $21,162 | High | 77th percentile mobility |
| #18 | Montana State UniversityPublic | $53,263 | $22,500 | Manageable | $25,000 | High | 69th percentile mobility |
| #19 | $47,626 | — | — | — | — | 86th percentile mobility | |
| #20 | $39,067 | $17,095 | Excellent | $10,166 | Good | 75th percentile mobility |
Our social mobility rankings answer: "Which schools deliver the best outcomes for students from low-income backgrounds?"
This is not simply "which schools admit the most low-income students" — it's which schools both serve low-income students and deliver strong earnings outcomes.
Data based on May 2026 refresh for 2026 rankings, based on Department of Education reporting standards. Learn about our methodology →
