Unexpectedly Intriguing!
20 June 2011
The Chronicle of Higher Education came out with a cool interactive graphic showing the economic value of a bachelor's degree by college major.
But, there's a problem with presenting data like this - it makes the user one-step removed from being able to quickly visualize where their major of interest ranks among others. Worse, because when you highlight over a given academic category to drill down into the actual major of interest, the pop-up display that appears covers over the adjacent majors, making it time-consuming to see how it compares to those other fields.
Now, it's not anywhere near as pretty, but we've compiled all the data presented in the Chronicle's interactive graphic into the dynamic table below, which will allow you to sort the data by academic category, major and even the median salary by clicking the column headings (if you're accessing this post through an RSS feed, you'll need to click through to our original post to gain that functionality!)
We've also added the U.S. Census' data for 2009 on the median earnings of all income earners, as well as all those who work in full-time, year round occupations, and also those who have earned bachelor degrees and who work in full-time, year round occupations for comparison purposes. Enjoy!
| Median Salaries by Occupation, 2010 |
|---|
| Category | Major | Median Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Agricultural and Natural Resources | Food Sciences | $65,000 |
| Agricultural and Natural Resources | Agricultural Economics | $60,000 |
| Agricultural and Natural Resources | Forestry | $60,000 |
| Agricultural and Natural Resources | Agricultural Production and Management | $50,000 |
| Agricultural and Natural Resources | Natural Resources Management | $50,000 |
| Agricultural and Natural Resources | Plant Science and Agronomy | $50,000 |
| Agricultural and Natural Resources | Agriculture (Miscellaneous) | $47,000 |
| Agricultural and Natural Resources | Agriculture (General) | $45,000 |
| Agricultural and Natural Resources | Animal Sciences | $44,000 |
| Arts | Film, Video and Photographic Arts | $46,000 |
| Arts | Commercial Arts and Graphic Design | $45,000 |
| Arts | Fine Arts | $45,000 |
| Arts | Music | $42,000 |
| Arts | Drama and Theater Arts | $40,000 |
| Arts | Studio Arts | $40,000 |
| Arts | Visual and Performing Arts | $40,000 |
| Biology and Life Science | Microbiology | $60,000 |
| Biology and Life Science | Biochemical Sciences | $53,000 |
| Biology and Life Science | Environmental Science | $51,000 |
| Biology and Life Science | Biology (General) | $50,000 |
| Biology and Life Science | Biology (Miscellaneous) | $50,000 |
| Biology and Life Science | Zoology | $50,000 |
| Biology and Life Science | Molecular Biology | $45,000 |
| Biology and Life Science | Physiology | $45,000 |
| Biology and Life Science | Ecology | $44,000 |
| Biology and Life Science | Botany | $42,000 |
| Business | Business Economics | $75,000 |
| Business | Actuarial Science | $68,000 |
| Business | Management Information Systems and Statistics | $67,000 |
| Business | Finance | $65,000 |
| Business | Operations Logistics and e-Commerce | $65,000 |
| Business | Accounting | $63,000 |
| Business | Business (General) | $60,000 |
| Business | Business Management and Administration | $58,000 |
| Business | Marketing and Marketing Research | $58,000 |
| Business | Human Resources and Personnel Management | $55,000 |
| Business | International Business | $55,000 |
| Business | Business (Miscellaneous) | $53,000 |
| Business | Medical Administration | $53,000 |
| Business | Hospitality Management | $50,000 |
| Communications and Journalism | Journalism | $51,000 |
| Communications and Journalism | Advertising and Public Relations | $50,000 |
| Communications and Journalism | Communications | $50,000 |
| Communications and Journalism | Mass Media | $45,000 |
| Computers and Mathematics | Mathematics and Computer Science | $98,000 |
| Computers and Mathematics | Applied Mathematics | $76,000 |
| Computers and Mathematics | Computer Engineering | $75,000 |
| Computers and Mathematics | Computer Science | $75,000 |
| Computers and Mathematics | Mathematics | $67,000 |
| Computers and Mathematics | Information Sciences | $66,000 |
| Computers and Mathematics | Computer and Information Systems | $62,000 |
| Computers and Mathematics | Computer Programming and Data Processing | $56,000 |
| Computers and Mathematics | Computer Adminstration Management and Security | $55,000 |
| Computers and Mathematics | Computer Networking and Telecommunications | $55,000 |
| Computers and Mathematics | Communication Technologies | $50,000 |
| Education | Education (Miscellaneous) | $50,000 |
| Education | Secondary Teacher Education | $46,000 |
| Education | Physical and Health Education Teaching | $45,000 |
| Education | Mathematics Teacher Education | $45,000 |
| Education | Science and Computer Teaching Education | $44,000 |
| Education | Scoence and Computer Teacher Education | $43,000 |
| Education | Art and Music Education | $42,000 |
| Education | Education (General) | $42,000 |
| Education | Language and Drama Education | $42,000 |
| Education | Social Science or Teacher Education | $42,000 |
| Education | Special Needs Education | $42,000 |
| Education | Teacher Education (Multiple Levels) | $41,000 |
| Education | Elementary Education | $40,000 |
| Education | Early Childhood Education | $36,000 |
| Engineering | Petroleum Engineering | $120,000 |
| Engineering | Aerospace Engineering | $87,000 |
| Engineering | Chemical Engineering | $86,000 |
| Engineering | Electrical Engineering | $85,000 |
| Engineering | Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering | $82,000 |
| Engineering | Mechanical Engineering | $80,000 |
| Engineering | Metallurgical Engineering | $80,000 |
| Engineering | Mining and Mineral Engineering | $80,000 |
| Engineering | Civil Engineering | $78,000 |
| Engineering | Engineering Mechanics, Physics and Science | $78,000 |
| Engineering | Environmental Engineering | $75,000 |
| Engineering | Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering | $75,000 |
| Engineering | Environmental Engineering | $70,000 |
| Engineering | Engineering (General) | $70,000 |
| Engineering | Materials Engineering and Materials Science | $69,000 |
| Engineering | Engineering (Miscellaneous) | $69,000 |
| Engineering | Biomedical Engineering | $68,000 |
| Engineering | Electrical Engineering Technology | $68,000 |
| Engineering | Architectural Engineering | $65,000 |
| Engineering | Industrial Production Technologies | $65,000 |
| Engineering | Mechanical Engineering-Related Technologies | $64,000 |
| Engineering | Architecture | $63,000 |
| Engineering | Engineering Technologies (Miscellaneous) | $62,000 |
| Engineering | Engineering Technologies (General) | $60,000 |
| Engineering | Biological Engineering | $55,000 |
| Health | Pharmacy Pharmaceutical Sciences and Administration | $105,000 |
| Health | Nursing | $60,000 |
| Health | Treatment Therapy Professions | $60,000 |
| Health | Medical Technologies Technicians | $58,000 |
| Health | Medical Assisting Services | $56,000 |
| Health | Health and Medical Adminstrative Services | $55,000 |
| Health | Community and Public Health | $48,000 |
| Health | Nutrition Sciences | $46,000 |
| Health | Medical and Health Services (General) | $45,000 |
| Health | Miscellaneous Health Medical Professions | $42,000 |
| Health | Health and Medical Preparatory Programs | $40,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | United States History | $57,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | Art History and Criticism | $50,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | History | $50,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | English Language and Literature | $48,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | Humanities | $48,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | Liberal Arts | $48,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | Other Foreign Languages | $48,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | Philosophy and Religious Studies | $48,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | Anthropology and Archaeology | $45,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | Area Ethnic and Civilization Studies | $45,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | Composition and Speech | $45,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | French, German, Latin, and Other Common Foreign Language Studies | $45,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | Linguistics and Comparative Language and Literature | $45,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | Intercultural and Internatinoal Studies | $44,000 |
| Humanities and Liberal Arts | Theology and Religious Vocations | $38,000 |
| Industrial Arts and Consumer Services | Construction Services | $70,000 |
| Industrial Arts and Consumer Services | Transportation Sciences and Technologies | $64,000 |
| Industrial Arts and Consumer Services | Electrical and Mechanic Repairs and Technologies | $57,000 |
| Industrial Arts and Consumer Services | Cosmetology Services and Culinary Arts | $46,000 |
| Industrial Arts and Consumer Services | Physical Fitness, Parks, Recreation, and Leisure | $43,000 |
| Industrial Arts and Consumer Services | Family and Consumer Sciences | $40,000 |
| Law and Public Policy | Public Administration | $59,000 |
| Law and Public Policy | Criminal Justice and Fire Protection | $50,000 |
| Law and Public Policy | Prelaw and Legal Studies | $49,000 |
| Law and Public Policy | Public Policy | $48,000 |
| Physical Sciences | Oceanography | $70,000 |
| Physical Sciences | Physics | $70,000 |
| Physical Sciences | Physical Sciences | $69,000 |
| Physical Sciences | Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology | $67,000 |
| Physical Sciences | Geology and Earth Science | $62,000 |
| Physical Sciences | Chemistry | $58,000 |
| Physical Sciences | Science (Multidisciplinary or General) | $55,000 |
| Physical Sciences | Nuclear, Industrial-Radiology and Biological Technologies | $52,000 |
| Psychology and Social Work | Industrial and Organizational Psychology | $53,000 |
| Psychology and Social Work | Psychology (Miscellaneous) | $45,000 |
| Psychology and Social Work | Psychology (General) | $45,000 |
| Psychology and Social Work | Communication Disorders Sciences and Services | $40,000 |
| Psychology and Social Work | Social Work | $39,000 |
| Psychology and Social Work | Human Services and Community Organization | $38,000 |
| Psychology and Social Work | Couseling Psychology | $29,000 |
| Social Science | Economics | $70,000 |
| Social Science | Statistics and Decision Science | $67,000 |
| Social Science | Political Science and Government | $59,000 |
| Social Science | Geography | $54,000 |
| Social Science | Social Sciences (Miscellaneous) | $51,000 |
| Social Science | International Relations | $50,000 |
| Social Science | Social Sciences (General) | $49,000 |
| Social Science | Criminology | $48,000 |
| Social Science | Social Sciences (Interdisciplinary) | $48,000 |
| Social Science | Sociology | $45,000 |
| Median Income | All Income Earners in 2009 | $26,134 |
| Median Income | Full Time, Year Round Income Earners in 2009 | $42,401 |
| Median Income | Full Time, Year Round Bachelor Degree Holding Income Earners in 2009 | $56,864 |
We may be tweaking the presentation of data in the median earnings column, where our dynamic table sorting routine has trouble may have trouble properly ranking six-figure incomes.
Labels: education
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