Ranked

US majors with the lowest graduate earnings

The other end of the same federal data. A low figure is not a verdict on the subject — it is the salary reality to plan your borrowing around.

#MajorLevelGradeMedian earningsTypical rangeGraduates/yr
201 Mechanical Engineering Related Technology Bachelor's B $59,711 $54,463–$62,508 2,611
202 Drafting & Design Engineering Technology Bachelor's B $54,154 $45,277–$64,706 354
203 Marketing Master's C $56,641 $46,087–$76,460 3,059
204 Biomedical Engineering Bachelor's B $60,771 $48,823–$66,611 8,820
205 Homeland Security Master's B $71,295 $47,260–$71,295 2,009
206 Quality Control Bachelor's A $66,969 $56,776–$60,213 1,482
207 Accounting Master's C $61,516 $57,318–$64,493 15,854
208 Engineering Physics Bachelor's A $69,338 $47,260–$61,218 691
209 Civil Engineering Bachelor's B $61,814 $57,318–$63,921 14,335
210 Nuclear Engineering Bachelor's B $63,005 $49,644–$66,287 427
211 Engineering Science Bachelor's A $66,169 $58,221–$63,005 501
212 Engineering Bachelor's A $63,997 $57,318–$65,573 2,693
213 Rehabilitation Master's C $63,600 $46,087–$66,941 8,046
214 Electrical & Electronic Engineering Technology Bachelor's B $61,702 $53,358–$63,749 1,362
215 Human Computer Interaction Bachelor's F $23,456 $36,848–$69,732 892
216 Computer Programming Bachelor's B $55,422 $52,941–$62,260 2,492
217 Healthcare Administration Master's C $62,012 $52,941–$71,015 15,738
218 Biotechnology Master's C $67,772 $50,856–$77,715 1,832
219 Construction Engineering Technology & Technician Bachelor's A $66,060 $58,673–$68,422 2,830
220 Business Management Master's B $76,460 $46,478–$82,440 1,178
221 Economics Master's B $70,596 $57,318–$70,596 5,317
222 Business Administration Master's B $69,218 $55,964–$78,719 119,231
223 Biological and Physical Sciences Master's C $64,791 $37,363–$64,791 551
224 Construction Management Bachelor's A $65,131 $61,020–$68,219 2,911
225 Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's A $66,004 $61,218–$68,219 33,840
226 Aerospace Engineering Bachelor's A $65,029 $61,380–$67,995 6,195
227 Materials Engineering Bachelor's A $66,541 $62,012–$68,219 1,305
228 Architectural Engineering Bachelor's A $66,240 $63,005–$67,324 834
229 Environmental Engineering Master's C $67,660 $59,169–$67,660 830
230 Computer Science Bachelor's A $72,286 $57,995–$74,576 43,677
231 Physics Master's B $71,575 $53,984–$71,575 2,152
232 Computer Networking Master's C $68,666 $66,592–$68,666 593
233 Biomathematics Master's B $78,343 $63,005–$71,575 1,991
234 Chemical Engineering Bachelor's A $69,338 $60,714–$72,022 8,935
235 Legal Research Master's B $73,949 $51,607–$83,325 9,029
236 Building & Construction Finishing Bachelor's A $67,660 $67,660–$69,338 251
237 Industrial Engineering Bachelor's A $69,710 $63,005–$71,643 5,205
238 Electrical Engineering Bachelor's A $70,456 $66,461–$72,699 15,611
239 Management Information Systems Master's A $90,998 $66,885–$82,440 2,009
240 Air Transportation Master's B $77,039 $61,064–$77,039 725

A low figure is a planning input, not a verdict

Nothing here says these subjects are not worth studying. It says that if you borrow heavily for one of them, the repayment will take a larger share of your pay for longer — so the price of the institution matters more, and scholarships matter more.

Two years out is early for some fields

Subjects that lead into further study or long qualification routes — psychology, biology, fine art, humanities heading to teaching or law — look weakest at this measuring point and often improve substantially later. The data cannot see that; you can.

Questions

Which college majors earn the least?
Mechanical Engineering Related Technology (Bachelor's) — $58,522 median earnings two years after finishing, across 103 US programmes.
Are these starting salaries?
No. They are median earnings two years after students completed the degree, taken from tax records rather than surveys or job adverts.
Can I compare a master's with a bachelor's here?
Only with care. Each grade is a percentile inside its own credential level, so an A master's and an A bachelor's are both top-of-their-level rather than equal in salary.

Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard field-of-study earnings, measured two years after completion. Majors with too few programmes publishing earnings are left out rather than estimated.