How much money do Virginia Tech graduates make and which majors earn the most upon graduating? Six years after enrolling, alumni who are working have average earnings of $49,200 per year. After ten years, graduates earn $65,000 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 Virginia Tech graduates.
The undergraduate degree which initially pays the highest is Computer and Information Sciences with a median starting salary of $83,600 followed by Computer Engineering paying $72,100 and Chemical Engineering graduates who have a median starting income of $70,100 .
Looking at post-graduate and doctorate students, those completing the Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degree) program rank first with a median initial income of $111,300 followed by Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services, Other (Master's Degree) at $94,800 and Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degree) who earn $86,300 .
Note about salary data: First year earnings data are aggregated by the US Department of Education and analyzes IRS reported income for Virginia Tech 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 Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degree) | $111,300 |
| Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services, Other (Master's Degree) | $94,800 |
| Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degree) | $86,300 |
| Computer and Information Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $83,600 |
| Veterinary Medicine (Doctoral Degree) | $74,400 |
| Computer Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $72,100 |
| Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degree) | $70,400 |
| Chemical Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $70,100 |
| Civil Engineering (Master's Degree) | $70,100 |
| Public Administration (Master's Degree) | $70,100 |
| Industrial Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $67,700 |
| Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Bachelor’s Degree) | $67,700 |
| Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $67,100 |
| Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $66,400 |
| Mining and Mineral Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $66,300 |
| Construction Management (Bachelor’s Degree) | $64,200 |
| Natural Resources Management and Policy (Master's Degree) | $62,800 |
| Engineering Mechanics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $62,400 |
| Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $62,000 |
| Construction Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $61,800 |
| Civil Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $61,000 |
| Materials Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $60,300 |
| Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $60,100 |
| Engineering-Related Fields (Bachelor’s Degree) | $59,000 |
| Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degree) | $58,900 |
| Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $57,600 |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences Studies and Humanities (Master's Degree) | $57,100 |
| Architecture (Master's Degree) | $55,600 |
| Medicine (First Professional Degree) | $53,800 |
| Agricultural Engineering (Bachelor’s Degree) | $51,900 |
| Business/Managerial Economics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $51,600 |
| Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degree) | $51,100 |
| Architecture (Bachelor’s Degree) | $50,000 |
| Marketing (Bachelor’s Degree) | $46,600 |
| Public Health (Master's Degree) | $45,400 |
| Curriculum and Instruction (Master's Degree) | $45,000 |
| Economics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $45,000 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor’s Degree) | $44,900 |
| Hospitality Administration/Management (Bachelor’s Degree) | $44,900 |
| Design and Applied Arts (Bachelor’s Degree) | $44,600 |
| Landscape Architecture (Bachelor’s Degree) | $44,400 |
| Agricultural Business and Management (Bachelor’s Degree) | $42,200 |
| Mathematics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $41,100 |
| Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences Business Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $40,300 |
| Statistics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $38,500 |
| Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $37,900 |
| Food Science and Technology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $37,700 |
| Political Science and Government (Bachelor’s Degree) | $37,300 |
| International Relations and National Security Studies (Bachelor’s Degree) | $37,000 |
| Natural Resources Conservation and Research (Bachelor’s Degree) | $36,600 |
| Forestry (Bachelor’s Degree) | $36,100 |
| Physics (Bachelor’s Degree) | $35,100 |
| Plant Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $34,800 |
| Chemistry (Bachelor’s Degree) | $34,400 |
| Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $34,300 |
| History (Bachelor’s Degree) | $33,400 |
| Sociology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $33,100 |
| Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $30,600 |
| Geography and Cartography (Bachelor’s Degree) | $30,100 |
| Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $29,500 |
| Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $29,300 |
| Psychology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $28,900 |
| Agricultural Production Operations (Associate's Degree) | $28,800 |
| Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor’s Degree) | $27,900 |
| Biology (Bachelor’s Degree) | $26,500 |
| Foods, Nutrition, and Related Services (Bachelor’s Degree) | $26,000 |
| Animal Sciences (Bachelor’s Degree) | $25,500 |
| English Language and Literature (Bachelor’s Degree) | $23,300 |
| Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management (Bachelor’s Degree) | $21,000 |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft (Bachelor’s Degree) | $18,200 |
Primary data source, U.S. Department of Education https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/?id=233921 IPEDS survey and College Scorecard data for Virginia Tech.