How much money do Michigan State University graduates make and which majors earn the most upon graduating? Six years after enrolling, alumni who are working have average earnings of $42,700 per year. After ten years, graduates earn $60,000 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 Michigan State graduates.
The undergraduate degree which initially pays the highest is Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering with a median starting salary of $74,700 followed by Computer Engineering paying $72,900 and Mechanical Engineering graduates who have a median starting income of $72,600 .
Looking at post-graduate and doctorate students, those completing the Business/Commerce (Master's Degree) program rank first with a median initial income of $122,600 followed by Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degree) at $93,900 and Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degree) who earn $92,000 .
Note about salary data: First year earnings data are aggregated by the US Department of Education and analyzes IRS reported income for Michigan 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 |
|---|---|
| Business/Commerce (Master's Degree) | $122,600 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degree) | $93,900 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degree) | $92,000 |
| Human Resources Management and Services (Master's Degree) | $86,300 |
| Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degree) | $84,000 |
| Food Science and Technology (Master's Degree) | $79,400 |
| Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $74,700 |
| Veterinary Medicine (First Professional Degree) | $73,800 |
| Computer Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $72,900 |
| Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $72,600 |
| Computer and Information Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $70,200 |
| Pharmacology and Toxicology (Master's Degree) | $69,200 |
| Materials Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $68,700 |
| Chemical Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $67,400 |
| Construction Engineering Technologies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $64,900 |
| Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $63,200 |
| Engineering-Related Fields (Bachelor’s Degree) | $62,800 |
| Civil Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $61,200 |
| Marketing (Master's Degree) | $60,500 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor’s Degree) | $60,400 |
| Homeland Security, Law Enforcement, Firefighting and Related Protective Services, Other (Master's Degree) | $60,200 |
| Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degree) | $60,000 |
| Human Resources Management and Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $59,700 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor’s Degree) | $59,200 |
| Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $58,700 |
| Agricultural Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $56,700 |
| Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $55,300 |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections (Master's Degree) | $54,600 |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and Services (Master's Degree) | $54,300 |
| Medicine (First Professional Degree) | $54,100 |
| Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degree) | $52,500 |
| Osteopathic Medicine/Osteopathy (First Professional Degree) | $52,400 |
| Marketing (Bachelor’s Degree) | $51,300 |
| Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Bachelor’s Degree) | $50,900 |
| Educational/Instructional Media Design (Master's Degree) | $49,800 |
| Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science/Research and Allied Professions (Bachelor’s Degree) | $47,700 |
| Public Health (Master's Degree) | $47,500 |
| Educational Administration and Supervision (Graduate/Professional Certificate) | $47,300 |
| Physics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $47,000 |
| Special Education and Teaching (Master's Degree) | $46,200 |
| Economics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $45,300 |
| Education (Master's Degree) | $44,700 |
| Curriculum and Instruction (Master's Degree) | $44,600 |
| Agricultural Business and Management (Bachelor’s Degree) | $44,300 |
| Social Work (Master's Degree) | $43,900 |
| International Relations and National Security Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $42,700 |
| Student Counseling and Personnel Services (Master's Degree) | $42,300 |
| Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions (Master's Degree) | $41,200 |
| Hospitality Administration/Management (Bachelor’s Degree) | $40,700 |
| Food Science and Technology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $39,600 |
| Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication (Bachelor’s Degree) | $39,000 |
| Chemistry (Bachelor’s Degree) | $38,800 |
| Education (Bachelor’s Degree) | $38,100 |
| Geography and Cartography (Bachelor’s Degree) | $38,100 |
| Music (Bachelor’s Degree) | $38,100 |
| Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $38,000 |
| Political Science and Government (Bachelor’s Degree) | $37,700 |
| Mathematics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $37,400 |
| Sociology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $37,100 |
| Social Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $36,900 |
| Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $36,200 |
| Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $36,200 |
| Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Master's Degree) | $36,200 |
| Soil Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $35,700 |
| Non-Professional General Legal Studies (Undergraduate) (Bachelor’s Degree) | $35,500 |
| Animal Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $35,200 |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections (Bachelor’s Degree) | $34,700 |
| Design and Applied Arts (Bachelor’s Degree) | $34,100 |
| Microbiological Sciences and Immunology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $33,900 |
| Journalism (Bachelor’s Degree) | $33,700 |
| Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $33,600 |
| Plant Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $32,900 |
| Natural Resources Conservation and Research (Bachelor’s Degree) | $32,300 |
| Music (Doctoral Degree) | $31,400 |
| Social Work (Bachelor’s Degree) | $31,300 |
| History (Bachelor’s Degree) | $30,800 |
| East Asian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $30,600 |
| Psychology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $29,400 |
| International/Global Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $28,800 |
| Genetics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $28,700 |
| Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor’s Degree) | $28,200 |
| Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $27,800 |
| English Language and Literature (Bachelor’s Degree) | $27,800 |
| Music (Master's Degree) | $27,400 |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences Studies and Humanities (Bachelor’s Degree) | $27,000 |
| Applied Horticulture and Horticultural Business Services (Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma) | $26,400 |
| Biology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $25,800 |
| Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other (Bachelor’s Degree) | $25,500 |
| Neurobiology and Neurosciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $25,200 |
| Physiology, Pathology and Related Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $24,900 |
| Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management (Bachelor’s Degree) | $24,600 |
| Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor’s Degree) | $24,000 |
| Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $23,900 |
| Zoology/Animal Biology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $23,200 |
| Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $23,100 |
| Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $21,100 |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft (Bachelor’s Degree) | $19,800 |
| Anthropology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $18,200 |
Primary data source, U.S. Department of Education https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/?id=171100 IPEDS survey and College Scorecard data for Michigan State University.