14 Transportation colleges in the Midwest with strong social mobility outcomes. Average earnings: $54,788.
Most rankings ignore accessibility. We flipped the model: first, filter for schools that actually enroll and graduate low-income students (60th percentile+ mobility). Then rank by earnings. These 13 Transportation programs made the cut.
Purdue University-Main Campus leads the rankings, producing Transportation graduates earning $72,424 while maintaining a 95th percentile mobility score. The top three schools all exceed $60,000 in median earnings—demonstrating that programs serving low-income students can compete on outcomes, not just access.
Southern Illinois University-Carbondale serves 37% Pell Grant recipients—students from families earning under $60,000—while still producing graduates earning $53,390. The best mobility schools deliver a double win: University Of Nebraska At Omaha exemplifies this with 86th percentile mobility and just a 4.8% payment burden, landing in the 'Excellent' affordability category.
Earnings: $72,424 | Mobility: 95th percentile
37% Pell students with $53,390 earnings
4.8% payment burden | Excellent - payment under 8% of discretionary
9.4% family burden | Good - payment 8-12% of discretionary
| Rank | School | Graduate Earnings | Student Debt | Student GPS | Parent Debt | Parent GPS | Mobility |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | $72,424 | $19,500 | Excellent | $29,448 | Good | 95th percentile mobility | |
| #2 | $63,552 | $22,057 | Excellent | $14,269 | Excellent | 77th percentile mobility | |
| #3 | $60,409 | $19,976 | Excellent | $25,868 | Manageable | 96th percentile mobility | |
| #4 | Kansas State UniversityPublic | $57,262 | $21,250 | Excellent | $27,283 | Good | 82th percentile mobility |
| #5 | $56,922 | $21,106 | Excellent | $13,695 | Excellent | 73th percentile mobility | |
| #6 | $53,909 | $19,000 | Excellent | $15,945 | Good | 85th percentile mobility | |
| #7 | $53,562 | $26,188 | Excellent | $22,488 | Good | 81th percentile mobility | |
| #8 | $53,390 | $21,543 | Excellent | $19,500 | Good | 88th percentile mobility | |
| #9 | $52,581 | $21,056 | Excellent | $23,508 | Good | 74th percentile mobility | |
| #10 | $51,793 | $25,000 | Excellent | $16,878 | Good | 79th percentile mobility | |
| #11 | $49,560 | — | — | — | — | 61th percentile mobility | |
| #12 | Indiana State UniversityPublic | $48,387 | $24,000 | Excellent | $17,049 | Manageable | 79th percentile mobility |
| #13 | $47,896 | $25,000 | Excellent | $25,947 | Manageable | 72th percentile mobility | |
| #14 | $45,388 | $24,500 | Excellent | $21,394 | Manageable | 87th 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 →
