Newsletters
Careers
Marielle Descalsota
2023-02-28T05:55:15Z
- The New York Federal Reserve released a labor-market report on college majors.
- The report found that recent graduates with diplomas in six majors were earning less than $40,000.
- Theology and religion was the worst-paying major five years after graduation.
There are six college degrees that left graduates earning a median salary of less than $40,000 within about five years of graduation, according to an analysis by the New York Federal Reserve.
The analysis, published in February, took into account the earnings of recent college graduates and explored the labor market according to their college major.
The New York Federal Reserve's data analyzed the median salaries of graduates in 2021. The data only includes the salaries of full-time workers with a bachelor's degree, and excludes those currently enrolled in school. Two types of salaries were detailed in the analysis: early-career, which refers to graduates between 22 and 27 years old, and mid-career, which refers to graduates between 35 to 45 years old.
The New York Federal Reserve found the six lowest-paying majors fell under social sciences and liberal arts. In comparison, the highest-paying majors were all in STEM industries, which include careers in science, technology, engineering, and math. Notably, chemical engineers took the top spot when it came to high wages, with a median salary of $75,000 five years after graduation.
Take a look at how much the lowest-paying majors are earning, according to the New York Fed's data. The underemployment — defined in the report as working in jobs that typically don't require a college degree — and unemployment rates for each major are shared as well.
Entrants are arranged from the highest median salary to the lowest.
Advertisem*nt
6. Performing arts
Median wage, early career: $39,000
Unemployment rate: 7.6%
Underemployment rate: 64%
People who majored in performing arts were earning a median wage of $62,000 as a mid-career worker in 2021, per the New York Federal Reserve.
Some 2.6 million performing arts graduates were employed in 2019, according to the US Labor of Bureau Statistics. College degrees are not often required for musicians or singers, per the BLS. Performing arts graduates work in industries inlcuding art, design, and media.
Advertisem*nt
5. Leisure and hospitality
Median wage, early career: $38,000
Unemployment rate: 5.3%
Underemployment rate: 58.6%
Graduates of leisure and hospitality can expect to earn $60,000 in their mid-careers, per the New York Federal Reserve.
Leisure and hospitality graduates typically work jobs in food and beverage, tourism, and hotels. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, some 14 million people were employed in leisure and hospitality industries. The BLS estimates this figure will grow to 16 million by 2031.
Advertisem*nt
4. Psychology
Median wage, early career: $37,400
Unemployment rate: 4.7%
Underemployment rate: 47.6%
Psychology graduates can expect to earn $65,000 at mid-career, per the New York Federal Reserve.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, some 3.1 million psychology graduates were employed in 2019. Psychology graduates typically work in jobs like management occupations and community and social service.
According to Niche, a college information site, psychology was the third-most-popular major for high-school graduates in 2022.
Advertisem*nt
2. Social services
Median wage, early career: $37,000
Unemployment rate: 3%
Underemployment rate: 27.7%
Social-services graduates earn $52,000 at mid-career, per the New York Federal Reserve.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, some 891,000 social services graduates — a figure that also took public policy graduates into account — were employed in 2019. The majority of social services graduates work jobs in social work, per BLS.
Advertisem*nt
2. Family and consumer sciences
Median wage, early career: $37,000
Unemployment rate: 8.9%
Underemployment rate: 47.9%
Family and consumer sciences graduates earn $60,000 at mid-career, per the New York Federal Reserve.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, around 480,000 family and consumer sciences graduates were employed in 2019. Graduates typically work in industries including education, management, and administration.
Advertisem*nt
1. Theology and religion
Median wage, early career: $36,000
Unemployment rate: 3.6%
Underemployment rate: 35.5%
At mid-career, theology and religion graduates earn a median of $52,000 annually, per the New York Federal Reserve.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, some 387,000 theology graduates were employed in 2019. Theology graduates often work in community and social service jobs.
Corrections: March 1, 2020 — An earlier version of this story stated that people with six different college degrees earn $40,000 or less five years after they graduate, on average. There are six degrees with which people earn less than $40,000 five years after graduating, not $40,000 or less. An earlier version of the story also included salary data fromIndeed.com, which has since been removed and replaced with different information from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Read next
Advertisem*nt
