Founder
Undergradly is a small, independent project built and maintained by Max, a software engineer who runs the data pipeline behind the site. Max holds a Bachelor's degree in Software Engineering and a Master of Arts in Linguistics, with 20 years of professional software development experience — most of it spent building systems that turn large public datasets into something people can actually use. Earlier career work included technical writing and interpreting in industrial settings, and several years in international procurement.
Articles are researched and written from primary government and public data we ingest, clean, and analyze in-house: IPEDS (the federal census of colleges), the Department of Education's College Scorecard, U.S. Census PSEO earnings records, Opportunity Insights mobility research, and Bureau of Labor Statistics wage and employment projections. Every verdict on the site — worth-it calls, transfer pathways, ROI comparisons — is derived from those sources, not from reputation surveys or paid placements.
Where a specific figure is cited inline, the relevant dataset is linked in context, and we update content as new federal releases land each year. If you spot an error, write to us and we'll fix it.
Starting at community college can cut published tuition by more than half — but only 31.6% of starters transfer, and under half of those finish. The numbers, both directions.
Over a million adults re-enrolled in college last year — a record. Here's what the earnings data, grant aid, and transfer rules say about finishing the degree you started.
Published tuition and what families actually pay are two different numbers — often tens of thousands of dollars apart. Here's how to find your real price before you rule a school out.
Grad PLUS loans ended for new borrowers, Parent PLUS is capped, and new borrowers now choose between two repayment plans. The key numbers from the July 1, 2026 overhaul.
A data-driven look at whether a bachelor's or associate's degree pays off — and which paths deliver the strongest return on your investment.
