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Computer engineering ranked second at $125,120, followed by registered nursing and related fields at $123,693 and computer science at $123,528, according to a report released by U.S. higher education research and policy organization HEA Group in late August.
Most of the highest-paying fields were in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM.
Healthcare was also represented, with nursing ranking third and clinical and medical laboratory science ninth.
The California-specific analysis covers 276,963 graduates across 2,958 programs, 225 fields of study and 386 institutions.
It uses earnings data from the U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of the Treasury for students who completed their programs between 2017 and 2019. Their earnings were measured in 2022 and 2023 and adjusted to 2024 dollars.
California's 10 highest-paying bachelor's fields with average annual earnings above $100,000
|
Rank |
Field of study |
Average annual earnings |
|
1 |
Mathematics and computer science |
$138,785 |
|
2 |
Computer engineering |
$125,120 |
|
3 |
Registered nursing, nursing administration, nursing research and clinical nursing |
$123,693 |
|
4 |
Computer science |
$123,528 |
|
5 |
Engineering, general |
$117,199 |
|
6 |
Electrical, electronics and communications engineering |
$116,839 |
|
7 |
Construction management |
$112,576 |
|
8 |
Industrial engineering |
$105,268 |
|
9 |
Clinical/medical laboratory science/research and allied professions |
$104,786 |
|
10 |
Aerospace, aeronautical and astronautical/space engineering |
$104,630 |
The earnings gap was wide among California's most popular bachelor's fields.
Business administration, management and operations was the most popular, with 19,256 graduates represented in the data and average annual earnings of $74,271.
General psychology ranked second in popularity, with graduates earning $53,780 on average, while third-ranked sociology had 8,097 graduates and average earnings of $56,311.
 |
|
Graduates celebrating during a commencement ceremony at the University of California, Berkeley, U.S. Photo from the university's website |
Across bachelor's programs in California, typical earnings were $70,851 four years after graduation. That compared with $36,082 for Californians aged 25-34 with a high school diploma and no college experience.
HEA Group cautioned that earnings alone do not determine the value of a major, as different fields serve different purposes and income can be influenced by factors beyond a graduate's field of study.
California, America's most populous state with some 40 million residents, has one of the country's largest and most diverse higher education systems, spanning community colleges, public university systems and private institutions.
