This study documents the annual earnings of recent college graduates.

Key points

  • New data from the U.S. Department of Education reveal the annual earnings of recent college graduates.
  • Median earnings three years after graduation vary by credential: associate degree ($34,123), bachelor’s degree ($46,845), master’s degree ($60,901), professional degree ($78,226), and doctoral degree ($78,595).
  • We report median earnings by credential for all academic fields (4-digit CIP code).
  • We document the distribution of earnings for each of the largest academic fields, as well as which fields had the biggest change in earnings over time.