The Best-Paying College Majors

Interested in getting the most bang for your college tuition buck?  A new report from payscale.com lists that the top 10 best-paying college majors are all in the closely related fields of engineering, physics, computer science, and applied math.

Let’s take a look at the results sorted by mid-career median pay:

1. Engineering
2. Engineering
3. Engineering
4. Engineering
5. Engineering
6. Engineering
7. Physics
8. Applied Math
9. Computer Science
10. Engineering

Overall, these results should come as no great surprise.  Discoveries by past physicists have paved the way for the technology we have today (i.e. you have to discover quantum mechanics before you can invent iPhones). Science and technology still drive the economy today, mostly through the products developed by engineers.  For a slightly less-serious take, the Dilbert.com blog even has an interesting post today about the importance of engineering to an economy.

OK, now that I’ve made my point, here’s the list again from payscale.com in lovely chart form showing the actual fields of engineering as well:

Methodology Annual pay for Bachelors graduates without higher degrees. Typical starting graduates have 2 years of experience; mid-career have 15 years. See full methodology for more.

You have to go pretty far down the list to find a field which does not heavily involve number crunching.   If you’re interested in the other end of the spectrum, or just looking for non-mathematics-based fields, Huffington Post has the  worst paying majors list as a slideshow.

Of course, future salary potential is just one small factor to consider when choosing a college major.  Find a job that you love and you’ll be better off in the long run.  Have fun browsing.

-Dr. D