Ranked

Most popular US degrees by number of graduates

Ranked by how many students complete them each year, with what those graduates go on to earn.

#MajorLevelGradeMedian earningsTypical rangeGraduates/yr
1 Business Administration, Management and Operations Bachelor's C $41,937 $37,503–$47,260 160,246
2 Business Administration, Management and Operations Master's C $64,706 $55,964–$78,719 119,231
3 Psychology, General Bachelor's F $29,141 $26,353–$31,616 117,175
4 Biology, General Bachelor's F $28,443 $25,194–$32,382 85,344
5 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods Bachelor's C $35,605 $32,485–$38,721 51,441
6 Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness Bachelor's D $29,685 $26,248–$33,281 48,104
7 Criminal Justice and Corrections Bachelor's C $34,420 $31,205–$37,208 48,051
8 Finance and Financial Management Services Bachelor's B $49,864 $44,356–$55,348 47,431
9 Communication and Media Studies Bachelor's C $33,710 $29,685–$37,208 44,591
10 Marketing Bachelor's B $42,154 $37,896–$46,478 44,419
11 Computer and Information Sciences, General Bachelor's B $58,157 $50,439–$67,660 44,025
12 Computer Science Bachelor's A $66,073 $57,995–$74,576 43,677
13 Accounting and Related Services Bachelor's B $47,260 $42,123–$53,629 42,077
14 Political Science and Government Bachelor's C $33,993 $29,751–$37,896 41,107
15 Economics Bachelor's B $46,087 $41,087–$52,607 35,879
16 Social Work Master's D $44,960 $42,263–$48,432 34,645
17 Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's A $64,990 $61,218–$68,219 33,840
18 Computer and Information Sciences, General Master's B $80,705 $71,015–$94,408 29,526
19 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods Master's D $45,668 $41,789–$50,439 27,930
20 English Language and Literature, General Bachelor's F $28,598 $24,962–$32,382 27,287
21 Sociology Bachelor's D $31,443 $28,236–$34,847 25,941
22 Business/Commerce, General Bachelor's C $42,154 $37,208–$48,225 25,323
23 History Bachelor's D $29,685 $25,856–$33,604 23,955
24 Fine and Studio Arts Bachelor's F $25,467 $22,192–$28,960 23,904
25 Computer Science Master's A $94,408 $78,971–$106,421 22,158
26 Social Work Bachelor's D $32,249 $29,250–$34,244 20,205
27 Special Education and Teaching Master's C $48,685 $44,021–$54,275 19,550
28 Mathematics Bachelor's B $43,687 $38,289–$49,436 19,260
29 Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General Bachelor's D $31,594 $28,598–$36,141 19,233
30 Natural Resources Conservation and Research Bachelor's D $31,364 $27,476–$36,221 17,590
31 Health and Medical Administrative Services Bachelor's C $39,009 $35,416–$44,783 16,905
32 Accounting and Related Services Master's C $59,954 $57,318–$64,493 15,854
33 Health and Medical Administrative Services Master's C $62,818 $52,941–$71,015 15,738
34 Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering Bachelor's A $69,338 $66,461–$72,699 15,611
35 Music Bachelor's F $25,658 $21,508–$32,391 15,225
36 Civil Engineering Bachelor's B $60,523 $57,318–$63,921 14,335
37 Chemistry Bachelor's C $38,289 $33,281–$41,937 13,229
38 Film/Video and Photographic Arts Bachelor's F $25,194 $22,268–$27,482 12,629
39 Computer Engineering Bachelor's A $71,015 $63,749–$75,804 12,137
40 Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management Bachelor's B $51,035 $48,432–$60,192 11,636

Popular does not mean well paid

The most-awarded degrees in the US are not the best-paying ones. Business, psychology and nursing dominate on volume for reasons of interest, access and licensing rather than salary — check the earnings column beside each row.

Why volume matters anyway

A field with tens of thousands of graduates a year has a deep, competitive job market and plenty of programmes to choose between, which usually means more scholarship money in circulation and more places where you can study it affordably.

Questions

What is the most popular college major in the US?
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's) — $41,937 median earnings two years after finishing, across 1,597 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.
All degree grades Highest paying majors Lowest earning majors University costs & payback Scholarships

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.