How much money do Grand Valley State University graduates make and which majors earn the most upon graduating? Six years after enrolling, alumni who are working have average earnings of $35,600 per year. After ten years, graduates earn $44,600 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 GVSU graduates.
The undergraduate degree which initially pays the highest is Mechanical Engineering with a median starting salary of $66,200 followed by Computer and Information Sciences paying $63,900 and Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing graduates who have a median starting income of $56,800 .
Looking at post-graduate and doctorate students, those completing the Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Master's Degree) program rank first with a median initial income of $104,700 followed by Business/Commerce (Master's Degree) at $69,200 and Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Doctoral Degree) who earn $68,700 .
Note about salary data: First year earnings data are aggregated by the US Department of Education and analyzes IRS reported income for Grand Valley State University 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 |
|---|---|
| Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Master's Degree) | $104,700 |
| Business/Commerce (Master's Degree) | $69,200 |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Doctoral Degree) | $68,700 |
| Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $66,200 |
| Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology (Master's Degree) | $64,100 |
| Computer and Information Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $63,900 |
| Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degree) | $60,100 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor’s Degree) | $56,800 |
| Information Science/Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $56,200 |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Master's Degree) | $54,800 |
| Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor’s Degree) | $54,200 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor’s Degree) | $52,900 |
| Special Education and Teaching (Master's Degree) | $51,100 |
| Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Bachelor’s Degree) | $50,300 |
| International Business (Bachelor’s Degree) | $49,000 |
| Education (Master's Degree) | $48,000 |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and Services (Master's Degree) | $48,000 |
| Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $47,100 |
| Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $45,700 |
| Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degree) | $44,800 |
| Business/Managerial Economics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $44,600 |
| Statistics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $44,200 |
| Public Administration (Master's Degree) | $43,800 |
| Curriculum and Instruction (Master's Degree) | $43,700 |
| Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Bachelor’s Degree) | $43,000 |
| Chemistry (Bachelor’s Degree) | $42,700 |
| Public Health (Master's Degree) | $42,100 |
| Marketing (Bachelor’s Degree) | $41,800 |
| Social Work (Master's Degree) | $41,200 |
| Mathematics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $37,700 |
| Biological and Physical Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $35,900 |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections (Bachelor’s Degree) | $35,400 |
| Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication (Bachelor’s Degree) | $34,800 |
| Education (Bachelor’s Degree) | $34,800 |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Bachelor’s Degree) | $34,800 |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences Studies and Humanities (Bachelor’s Degree) | $33,800 |
| Music (Bachelor’s Degree) | $33,400 |
| Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs, Other (Bachelor’s Degree) | $33,000 |
| Social Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $32,800 |
| Political Science and Government (Bachelor’s Degree) | $32,600 |
| Hospitality Administration/Management (Bachelor’s Degree) | $32,400 |
| Legal Support Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $31,700 |
| Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $31,000 |
| Public Administration (Bachelor’s Degree) | $30,600 |
| Sociology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $30,300 |
| Natural Resources Conservation and Research (Bachelor’s Degree) | $29,700 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Bachelor’s Degree) | $29,400 |
| Biology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $29,400 |
| English Language and Literature (Bachelor’s Degree) | $29,300 |
| History (Bachelor’s Degree) | $29,200 |
| Social Work (Bachelor’s Degree) | $29,100 |
| Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $29,000 |
| Health/Medical Preparatory Programs (Bachelor’s Degree) | $28,900 |
| Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences, Other (Bachelor’s Degree) | $28,900 |
| Psychology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $28,000 |
| Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $26,400 |
| Radio, Television, and Digital Communication (Bachelor’s Degree) | $26,300 |
| International Relations and National Security Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $25,200 |
| Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor’s Degree) | $25,000 |
| Anthropology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $24,600 |
| Film/Video and Photographic Arts (Bachelor’s Degree) | $22,800 |
Primary data source, U.S. Department of Education https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/?id=170082 IPEDS survey and College Scorecard data for Grand Valley State University.