Computer Science

Is a Computer Science degree worth it?

Across 318 bachelor's programs that report earnings, the median pays its graduates $63,428 a year after graduation, and the middle half pay between $55,125 and $72,790. The median for all majors is $37,050. At the median program, graduates who borrowed owe $27,376. Debt is 0.43x first-year earnings, which ranks 19th of 147 majors, where 1st carries the least debt for the pay.

Computer science graduates start out earning far more than graduates of most majors, and the major ranks near the top of the list. The best-paying programs are at the most selective private universities, which admit a small fraction of applicants while the major's typical program admits most of them, and big tech firms recruit heavily on those campuses. Several of these programs are in California, home to the country's highest-paying tech hub.

The lowest-paying programs cluster on campuses in Puerto Rico, where federal wage data show software developers earn far less than the national level, and each of those figures rests on few graduates. Indiana University Northwest sits near the bottom because its bachelor's in this area was long Computer Information Systems, which trains systems analysts and programmers. A minority of graduates go straight on to a master's in computing, so first-year pay understates their path, and typical debt comes to less than half of typical first-year earnings.

These are earnings one year after graduating, for students who received federal aid. Majors that lead to graduate school, or to careers that start slowly, look worse here than they will ten years on.