What’s the highest paying college major?
23 July 2006That’s what CNN Money took a look at recently in this article. CNN compared the different majors to see what the average starting salaries were, and which ones had the biggest gains. Not suprisingly, all starting salaries were not equal, as I wrote about here. The lowest paying degrees? Traditional liberal arts degrees such as Political Science, which averaged $32,665, Sociology at $30,944, and Communications at $31,876.
The degrees that paid more were, predictably, those that taught a specific skill and thus made the students more marketable. Engineering degrees averaged around $52,000-53,000. Accounting degrees paid $45,656. Even more practical degrees in lower paying fields, such as Hotel Management, still beat out the liberal arts degrees.
The moral: you’re probably better off getting your degree in something useful. If you want to study English, do it as your minor. You’ll be financially better off.
Discuss this on the Free the Drones Forums here.
4 Responses to “What’s the highest paying college major?”
September 9th, 2006 at 8:37 pm
[...] We’ve looked at the highest paying college majors in the past, and whether you can really get a good job with any major. Today CNN has an article on the college degrees that are most likely to be marketable for the next ten years or so. Anne Fisher of CNNMoney suggests that the best degree options these days are in engineering – jobs in those fields are being generated faster than colleges can fill them up, and the shortage of skilled workers is starting to increase salaries – to the point that many of the top recent graduates from places like MIT are making six figures straight out of college. The average pay for engineers overall in the U.S. has hit $72,965 – a big bump over what they’d been making for the last few years. But it also makes a big difference what kind of engineering you go into – because demand for specific types of engineers varies. She points to several specific fields where they’re making a lot more money than usual – for one, chemical engineering. One chemical engineer said: [...]
October 24th, 2006 at 9:57 am
[...] Kevin Kneupper presents What’s the highest paying college major? posted at Free the Drones, saying, “A post on which college major students should select to make the most income vs. personal enjoyment.” [...]
September 6th, 2007 at 6:33 pm
Hi,
I am interested in chemical engineering and will major in it. But I am almost deaf. I have a lot of trouble to understand people when they talk. I try to read lips, but it isn’t enough fro me. My hearing problem is uncurable and hearing aids are helpless. Is chemical engineering, a field that requires a lot of talking(communication)
thanks
October 22nd, 2007 at 9:58 am
THX FOR THE HELP ON THE FUTURE PAY OF COLLEGE MAJORS