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What’s It Worth?: The Economic Value of College Majors

May 24, 2011May 9th, 20241 min read

What’s It Worth?

The Economic Value of College Majors

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What’s It Worth?: The Economic Value of College Majors details the relationships between major, gender, race/ethnicity, attending graduate school, and earnings.

Key Findings

1

At the extreme, the highest earning major earns 314 percent more at the median than the lowest-earning major at the median.
2

The data by sex, race, and ethnicity shows that inequality continues; Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, Asian/Asian American, and other individuals from minority backgrounds have lower annual earnings than their white counterparts with the same college major.
3

Women make less than men in all majors except three.
4

At the low end, median earnings for Early Childhood Education majors are $36,000, while Petroleum Engineering majors see median earnings of $120,000.

Resources

We’ve always been able to say how much a Bachelor’s degree is worth in general. Now, we show what each Bachelor’s degree major is worth.

What’s It Worth?: The Economic Value of College Majors finds that different undergraduate majors result in very different earnings. At the low end, median earnings for Early Childhood Education majors are $36,000, while Petroleum Engineering majors see median earnings of $120,000.

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