Regarding the choice of college question, my observation is that outside of select universities there isn't going to be much difference in the opportunities for the graduate.

That is to say some universities will have more value within their specific region, but say your son takes a Purdue degree to Denver. Maybe it doesn't have any more value than a Southern Illinois degree there. Depends what he wants long term.

There's a few sites that rank colleges based upon graduate income. Here's one https://www.payscale.com/college-salary-report/bachelors

There are some caveats there, e.g kids qualifying for the most selective schools are likely already predisposed to higher incomes. Those going to military academies have been identified early on for leadership abilities. Schools like the School of Mines won't have the lower earning degree programs at all. Some universities' degrees are worth more simply because the college is located in a higher income area of the country, where the bulk of the graduates will eventually work.

An oldie but a goodie!
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http://syruptrap.ca/2014/11/coyote-in-debt-21000-after-wandering-through-university/