Recent data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York has revealed that recent college graduates who pursued engineering degrees earned the highest wages in 2022 during their early careers. Chemical engineering graduates emerged as the top earners, with a median annual income of $75,000, followed closely by computer, aerospace, and mechanical engineering graduates who earned $70,000 or more in early-career yearly wages in 2022.
The data classifies early-career graduates as those aged between 22 and 27. Graduates who majored in finance, construction services, economics, or general engineering made a median of $60,000 last year, while nursing and pharmacy graduates each earned a median of $55,000 in their early careers. Accounting and information systems graduates were also among the high earners, with both groups earning a median of $54,000 annually in their early careers.
The report revealed that recent college graduates who pursued degrees in architecture, advertising and public relations, political science, general business, history, and international affairs earned approximately $50,000 last year. Graduates who majored in journalism, agriculture, environmental studies, ethnic studies, biochemistry, public policy and law, and nutrition sciences earned a median of $45,000 in their early careers in 2022.
On the other hand, the lowest-earning college majors included theology and religion, social services, family and consumer sciences, performing arts, psychology, and leisure and hospitality. Graduates in these fields earned between $36,000 and $39,000 in 2022.
Overall, the median annual wage for recent college graduates with a bachelor’s degree, defined as those ages 22 to 27, was $52,000 in 2022, according to the data.
Below is a table of the 20 highest paying majors for recent college graduates.
▶The full data can be accessed at: www.newyorkfed.org/research/college-labor-market/index#/outcomes-by-major
James Pak
LA Career Coaching
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