Which College Majors Pay the Most?
May 18, 2023
By Michael Itzkowitz
Almost everyone who pursues a postsecondary education assumes it will provide greater employability and financial security. But, the reality is, the field of study you choose can affect the likelihood of both.
In our latest data download, you can explore how much graduates earn depending on the college program they majored in. The data reflect a national average four years after students have completed their postsecondary studies.1
Below, we look at the 10 college majors where graduates earn the highest salaries, along with the outcomes of some of the most popular fields of study that students pursue.2
Bachelor’s degrees
Those who obtain a bachelor’s degree typically earn more than those who obtain an associate’s degree or postsecondary certificate. Unsurprisingly, the bachelor’s degree programs that lead to the highest salaries are heavily concentrated in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Computer Science, the most popular field of study in this group, show its grads earning around $105,000 per year. Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering—the second most popular major within the top 10—falls shortly behind at just under $92,000.
The most popular bachelor’s degree programs don’t necessarily lead to the highest salaries. While all show their graduates earning more than $40,000, only three of the most popular 10 lead to early career earnings above $50,000 per year (Business Administration, Registered Nursing, and Accounting).
Associate’s degrees
Similar to bachelor’s degrees, the associate’s degrees that lead to the highest earnings are also heavily concentrated in STEM fields. Since associate’s degrees require less education and time spent than a bachelor’s degree, the coinciding earnings are also less, on average. Only three majors—Physical Science Technologies, Bioethics/Medical Ethics, and Construction Engineering Technologies—show their grads earning more than $70,000 within four years of completing their studies.
The most popular associate’s degrees offer a wide range of earnings outcomes. Registered Nursing—also the second most popular baccalaureate program—show graduates earning a competitive early career salary, averaging just under $67,000 per year. Other popular associate-degree programs show students earning substantially less. For example, Health and Medical Administrative Services and Culinary Arts display average salaries just above $30,000, even four years after students have completed these programs.
Certificates
While certificates take substantially less time to complete than other credentials (usually between 6 and 18 months), some continue to offer very competitive salaries, even outpacing their associate’s and bachelor’s degree counterparts. For example, those who earn a certificate in Information Science or International Business average upwards of $65,000 just four years after graduation.3
Some of the most popular certificate programs are also the least economically advantageous. For example, the most popular certificate program—Cosmetology—displays the fifth lowest salary out of 107 fields of study for certificate programs across the US. Even so, those looking to get into other practical trades, such as auto repair or precision metal working, do quite well. Each show an early career salary above $40,000 after students earn their postsecondary certificate.
Final thoughts
College isn’t just about the money. There are many intangible aspects that salary data simply won’t measure. However, it is reasonable for one to expect that they will earn more over time by obtaining a college degree, and it’s worth knowing that some fields of study are more likely to lead to a higher economic premium. This new salary data allows prospective students to make a more informed decision as they examine individual programs at colleges they are considering.
1. This data reflects a weighted average of the program-level data released by the US Department of Education on April 25, 2023. It takes the median salary and number of students at individual college programs into account when calculating the weighted average salary data for programs across the US.
2. All data come from the US Department of Education. Most popular majors are reflective of fields of study that show the most graduates available within the earnings (cohort) data provided by the Department.
3. Albeit a smaller earnings cohort (157 cumulative graduates), an undergraduate certificate in Political Science and Government is shown be offered at New York University, University of Colorado Boulder, American University, Davidson College, and Norfolk State University.
