Survey Reveals Which College Majors Make Most Money, Humanities Students Predictably Poor

If you’re about to graduate with a degree in Engineering or a Computer science, good news: You’re probably going to earn heaps.

A new salary survey from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) suggests those with Engineering degrees are set to earn some of the best salaries out there. Such a degree attracts an average starting salary of $63,000. And, lo, the nerds did rule.

At the other end of the scale is — to the surprise of nobody — Humanities and Social science graduates (of which your writer is one). All those six-hours-a-week courses took their toll on us, you guys. Sigh.

However, US graduates are still better off overall. NACE reveals the average starting salary for 2013 grads earning bachelor’s degrees has soared to $45,000, a 5.3 percent increase on the same figure from 2012. NACE Executive Director Marilyn Mackes says:

“The sizable gains in several disciplines – particularly in health sciences and business – have helped to drive up the average starting salary for the class of 2013.”

Of all graduates, those in the Health sciences have enjoyed the biggest boost in the last year. Health science grads have seen their average wage increase by 9.4 percent since 2012 and can now expect an average starting salary of $50,000. Meanwhile, Business majors are also enjoying a 7.1 percent rise on last year, with the average salary for the discipline now $54,000.

However, even though salaries for Engineer grads only rose by four percent, it remains the college major that will make the best average salary.

Here’s a list of NACE’s findings, depicting average starting salaries by discipline:

> Engineering $63,000
> Computer Science $60,000
> Business $54,000
> Communications $43,000
> Math & Sciences $42,700
> Education $40,000
> Humanities & Social Sciences $37,000

[Image via Shutterstock.com]