Where the school matters most

The spread in graduates' pay across schools, for the same major.

For each bachelor's major reported by 30 or more schools, we line up every school's median graduate pay 4 years out. The gap between a lower-paying school (25th percentile) and a higher-paying one (75th) shows how much the school seems to matter. A wide gap says pick carefully. A narrow one says the major sets the pay more than the school. Either way it's correlation: schools enrol different students.

School matters most

Bachelor's major	Lower-paying schools (25th pct)	Higher-paying schools (75th pct)	Gap	Schools
Computer Software and Media Applications	$50,956	$79,441	1.56×	52
Religion/Religious Studies	$38,995	$59,148	1.52×	44
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions	$60,151	$88,354	1.47×	250
Graphic Communications	$38,009	$55,825	1.47×	58
Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services, Other	$63,387	$92,436	1.46×	37
Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies	$43,479	$61,238	1.41×	130
Applied Mathematics	$79,799	$112,196	1.41×	45
Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations	$53,632	$75,367	1.41×	73
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions	$52,663	$73,417	1.39×	83
Social Sciences, Other	$49,932	$68,553	1.37×	33
Statistics	$82,230	$112,278	1.37×	50
Health and Medical Administrative Services	$55,482	$75,180	1.36×	278
Zoology/Animal Biology	$44,056	$59,455	1.35×	50
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management	$78,149	$105,409	1.35×	98
Design and Applied Arts	$48,288	$65,039	1.35×	302
Area Studies	$53,109	$71,284	1.34×	70
Computer and Information Sciences, General	$80,989	$108,307	1.34×	461
Research and Experimental Psychology	$53,045	$70,930	1.34×	80
International/Globalization Studies	$53,316	$71,028	1.33×	87
Economics	$74,773	$99,413	1.33×	369

School matters least

Bachelor's major	Lower-paying schools (25th pct)	Higher-paying schools (75th pct)	Gap	Schools
Mechanical Engineering	$94,519	$102,477	1.08×	321
Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering	$83,574	$90,729	1.09×	46
Construction Management	$96,182	$105,686	1.10×	54
Engineering Technologies/Technicians, General	$80,604	$88,746	1.10×	33
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering	$101,690	$112,392	1.11×	258
Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management	$46,074	$50,949	1.11×	37
Civil Engineering	$87,071	$96,344	1.11×	234
Materials Engineering	$92,411	$102,499	1.11×	34
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering	$99,206	$110,372	1.11×	59
Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians	$83,354	$92,822	1.11×	61
Chemical Engineering	$98,368	$109,688	1.12×	159
Industrial Engineering	$98,409	$110,132	1.12×	96
Construction Engineering Technology/Technician	$92,706	$104,185	1.12×	40
Cell/Cellular Biology and Anatomical Sciences	$69,514	$78,540	1.13×	34
Architecture	$67,194	$75,996	1.13×	71
Biomedical/Medical Engineering	$94,815	$107,608	1.13×	119
Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Services	$56,355	$64,102	1.14×	69
Nutrition Sciences	$59,740	$67,983	1.14×	52
Computer Systems Networking and Telecommunications	$73,743	$83,994	1.14×	40
Engineering-Related Fields	$89,519	$102,347	1.14×	33

Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars. Restated in today's dollars.

More guides

Cheapest colleges by stateWhat families earning under $48k actually pay at public 4-year colleges, after grants.See the guide →Best-paying majors by stateMedian earnings 4 years after graduating, state by state, for the major you pick.See the guide →