How much money do University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign graduates make and which majors earn the most upon graduating? Six years after enrolling, alumni who are working have average earnings of $49,000 per year. After ten years, graduates earn $66,500 on average.
In terms of specific areas of study, the following is a ranking of degree programs by the median first-year starting salaries for Illinois graduates.
The undergraduate degree which initially pays the highest is Computer Science with a median starting salary of $92,200 followed by Computer Engineering paying $78,000 and Engineering Physics graduates who have a median starting income of $73,900 .
Looking at post-graduate and doctorate students, those completing the Computer Science (Master's Degree) program rank first with a median initial income of $123,100 followed by Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degree) at $91,500 and Taxation (Master's Degree) who earn $88,800 .
Note about salary data: First year earnings data are aggregated by the US Department of Education and analyzes IRS reported income for University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign graduates who received federal financial aid in the form of grants or loans. Not all graduates or fields of study are represented as data for some degree programs are omitted for privacy purposes.
| Major | Earnings |
|---|---|
| Computer Science (Master's Degree) | $123,100 |
| Computer Science (Bachelor’s Degree) | $92,200 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degree) | $91,500 |
| Taxation (Master's Degree) | $88,800 |
| Human Resources Management and Services (Master's Degree) | $87,700 |
| Computer Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $78,000 |
| Veterinary Medicine (Doctoral Degree) | $77,300 |
| Engineering Physics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $73,900 |
| Industrial Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $72,600 |
| Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $70,200 |
| Civil Engineering (Master's Degree) | $70,100 |
| Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $70,000 |
| Chemical Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $69,300 |
| Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $68,700 |
| Chemistry (Doctoral Degree) | $68,100 |
| Law (Doctoral Degree) | $67,700 |
| Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $67,200 |
| Management Information Systems and Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $67,000 |
| Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $66,200 |
| Engineering-Related Fields (Master's Degree) | $65,300 |
| Nuclear Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $64,500 |
| Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Bachelor’s Degree) | $63,700 |
| Civil Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $62,900 |
| Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degree) | $62,700 |
| Materials Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $62,200 |
| Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $61,400 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor’s Degree) | $60,700 |
| Statistics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $57,200 |
| Marketing (Bachelor’s Degree) | $55,900 |
| Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degree) | $55,400 |
| Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education (Master's Degree) | $54,600 |
| Agricultural Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $53,900 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Master's Degree) | $52,600 |
| Architecture (Master's Degree) | $51,700 |
| Agricultural Business and Management (Bachelor’s Degree) | $50,100 |
| Economics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $49,400 |
| Mathematics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $44,900 |
| Special Education and Teaching (Bachelor’s Degree) | $42,100 |
| Library Science and Administration (Master's Degree) | $41,200 |
| Food Science and Technology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $41,000 |
| Parks, Recreation and Leisure Studies (Master's Degree) | $40,700 |
| Social Work (Master's Degree) | $40,700 |
| Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication (Bachelor’s Degree) | $40,400 |
| Design and Applied Arts (Bachelor’s Degree) | $40,200 |
| Chemistry (Bachelor’s Degree) | $39,700 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Bachelor’s Degree) | $39,300 |
| Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $38,100 |
| Physics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $37,900 |
| Political Science and Government (Bachelor’s Degree) | $36,200 |
| Architecture (Bachelor’s Degree) | $36,100 |
| Public Health (Bachelor’s Degree) | $35,500 |
| Plant Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $35,300 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Bachelor’s Degree) | $35,100 |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft (Master's Degree) | $34,600 |
| Parks, Recreation and Leisure Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $34,000 |
| Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $33,300 |
| Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $33,200 |
| Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $32,700 |
| Area Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $32,400 |
| Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor’s Degree) | $32,000 |
| Journalism (Bachelor’s Degree) | $31,900 |
| Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $31,600 |
| Psychology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $30,200 |
| English Language and Literature (Bachelor’s Degree) | $28,500 |
| Sociology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $28,500 |
| History (Bachelor’s Degree) | $28,500 |
| Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $28,200 |
| Cell/Cellular Biology and Anatomical Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $28,000 |
| Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Other (Bachelor’s Degree) | $26,400 |
| Natural Resources Conservation and Research (Bachelor’s Degree) | $26,100 |
| Animal Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $25,200 |
| Systems Science and Theory (Bachelor’s Degree) | $23,300 |
| Anthropology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $22,700 |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $21,900 |
| Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor’s Degree) | $18,200 |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft (Bachelor’s Degree) | $17,300 |
| Music (Master's Degree) | $15,500 |
Primary data source, U.S. Department of Education https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/?id=145637 IPEDS survey and College Scorecard data for University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign.