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Economics Degree

351 schools compared · Average earnings $53,967/yr

Students study how individuals, businesses, and governments allocate scarce resources, including microeconomic theory, macroeconomic policy, econometrics, and financial markets. Graduates typically pursue careers in finance, consulting, government economic policy, banking, market research, and data analytics, or continue to graduate programs in economics, law, or business. Economics is one of the highest-paying social science degrees, with graduates valued for their analytical and quantitative skills.

What Economics Graduates Do

Your economics degree trains you to understand the "why" behind decisions. Many graduates apply this in management, where you'll spend your days allocating budgets, structuring team incentives, and using data to justify strategic shifts. Others become market research analysts, designing surveys and analyzing consumer behavior to tell marketing teams what will sell. For those with strong quantitative skills, the path to data science is exploding; you’ll build complex models to forecast sales or optimize pricing.

Your career will likely progress from analysis to strategy. You might start as an analyst cleaning datasets, but you’ll advance by becoming the person who interprets the findings for executives and recommends action. While data-centric roles are growing fast, other paths like secondary school teaching are shrinking.

With an average AI exposure of 55%, expect technology to automate significant parts of your job. The routine data collection and number-crunching will increasingly be handled by AI. Your value will shift to asking the right questions, critically evaluating a model's output, and making nuanced judgments that algorithms can't.

Schools Offering

351

Avg Grad Earnings

$53,967/yr

Avg DegreeOutlook Score

65/100

AI Automation Risk

Very High

59% task exposure

Common Career Paths

Where Economics graduates typically work, ranked by salary. Salary ranges show 25th–75th percentile spread. This field has roughly 293,500 combined openings per year.

Career Path	Salary Range	Openings/yr	Growth	AI Risk
Managers, all other	$136,550 $100K$179K	106,700	+4.5%	47%
Economics teachers, postsecondary	$119,980 $81K$167K	1,200	+2.1%	48%
Economists	$115,440 $82K$166K	900	+1.2%	61%
Data scientists	$112,590 $83K$156K	23,400	+33.5%	64%
Statisticians	$103,300 $79K$138K	2,000	+8.5%	66%
Market research analysts and marketing specialists	$76,950 $56K$105K	87,200	+6.7%	55%
Secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education	$64,580 $58K$83K	66,200	-1.6%	33%
Survey researchers	$63,380 $46K$85K	700	-5.2%	62%
Social science research assistants	$58,040 $46K$73K	5,200	+4.4%	67%

Managers, all other

$136,550

$100K $179K

106,700 openings/yr +4.5% growth 47% AI risk

Economics teachers, postsecondary

$119,980

$81K $167K

1,200 openings/yr +2.1% growth 48% AI risk

Economists

$115,440

$82K $166K

900 openings/yr +1.2% growth 61% AI risk

Data scientists

$112,590

$83K $156K

23,400 openings/yr +33.5% growth 64% AI risk

Statisticians

$103,300

$79K $138K

2,000 openings/yr +8.5% growth 66% AI risk

Market research analysts and marketing specialists

$76,950

$56K $105K

87,200 openings/yr +6.7% growth 55% AI risk

Secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education

$64,580

$58K $83K

66,200 openings/yr -1.6% growth 33% AI risk

Survey researchers

$63,380

$46K $85K

700 openings/yr -5.2% growth 62% AI risk

Social science research assistants

$58,040

$46K $73K

5,200 openings/yr +4.4% growth 67% AI risk

Source: BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics, May 2024. Salary range shows 25th–median–75th percentile (national).

Best Schools for Economics

Top 20 of 351 schools ranked by DegreeOutlook Score. Click any row for full AI scenario analysis and earnings projections.

#	School	DW Score	Earnings	ROI
1	University of California-Berkeley Berkeley, CA	84 80–85	$80,446/yr	20.2x
2	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC	82 78–83	$65,344/yr	25.9x
3	Brigham Young University Provo, UT	82 78–83	$63,332/yr	37.1x
4	Southern New Hampshire University Manchester, NH	81 77–82	$69,807/yr	16.2x
5	University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI	80 76–81	$68,416/yr	14.8x
6	California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, CA	80 77–81	$67,501/yr	19.2x
7	University of California-Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA	80 77–81	$66,334/yr	17.0x
8	Utah State University Logan, UT	80 76–81	$60,472/yr	22.9x
9	The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX	80 75–81	$58,717/yr	19.8x
10	Sonoma State University Rohnert Park, CA	80 76–81	$53,825/yr	29.7x
11	University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT	79 75–80	$64,386/yr	20.6x
12	James Madison University Harrisonburg, VA	79 75–80	$62,286/yr	16.8x
13	University of California-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA	79 75–80	$62,091/yr	17.3x
14	Purdue University-Main Campus West Lafayette, IN	78 74–79	$59,187/yr	19.3x
15	Indiana University-Bloomington Bloomington, IN	78 74–79	$59,142/yr	17.4x
16	University of Maryland-College Park College Park, MD	78 74–79	$58,650/yr	17.9x
17	Harvard University Cambridge, MA	77 73–78	$103,993/yr	5.8x
18	University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Oshkosh, WI	77 73–78	$57,663/yr	21.1x
19	Iowa State University Ames, IA	77 73–78	$57,619/yr	18.3x
20	University of Wisconsin-Madison Madison, WI	77 72–78	$54,495/yr	18.0x
21	University of Washington-Seattle Campus Seattle, WA	77 73–78	$53,934/yr	17.3x
22	Duke University Durham, NC	76 72–77	$98,649/yr	5.5x
23	Stanford University Stanford, CA	76 72–77	$98,104/yr	4.9x
24	Dartmouth College Hanover, NH	76 71–77	$94,675/yr	4.8x
25	University of Virginia-Main Campus Charlottesville, VA	76 72–77	$74,958/yr	10.4x
26	University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL	76 71–77	$58,921/yr	13.2x
27	CUNY Bernard M Baruch College New York, NY	76 72–77	$51,728/yr	25.0x
28	SUNY College at Geneseo Geneseo, NY	76 73–78	$48,691/yr	23.8x
29	University of Chicago Chicago, IL	75 71–77	$92,075/yr	4.9x
30	Amherst College Amherst, MA	75 71–76	$90,568/yr	4.6x
31	Claremont McKenna College Claremont, CA	75 71–76	$89,505/yr	4.9x
32	University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA	75 71–76	$89,097/yr	4.8x
33	Middlebury College Middlebury, VT	75 70–76	$85,879/yr	4.7x
34	University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus Denver, CO	75 71–76	$56,201/yr	17.3x
35	University of South Dakota Vermillion, SD	75 71–76	$52,857/yr	18.9x
36	University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus Norman, OK	75 71–76	$52,212/yr	18.8x
37	Binghamton University Vestal, NY	75 72–76	$48,120/yr	20.4x
38	University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Whitewater, WI	75 72–76	$46,404/yr	25.1x
39	Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA	74 70–75	$86,284/yr	4.2x
40	Barnard College New York, NY	74 70–75	$85,860/yr	4.2x
41	Cornell University Ithaca, NY	74 69–75	$84,967/yr	3.9x
42	Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN	74 69–75	$84,311/yr	4.0x
43	Williams College Williamstown, MA	74 70–75	$80,888/yr	4.8x
44	Miami University-Oxford Oxford, OH	74 70–75	$57,379/yr	11.9x
45	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, VA	74 70–75	$56,261/yr	13.0x
46	Kansas State University Manhattan, KS	74 70–75	$52,490/yr	16.3x
47	Central Washington University Ellensburg, WA	74 70–75	$52,129/yr	18.8x
48	University of Houston Houston, TX	74 70–75	$50,820/yr	18.2x
49	University of Iowa Iowa City, IA	74 70–75	$50,223/yr	17.1x
50	University of Georgia Athens, GA	74 70–75	$49,725/yr	16.9x
51	University of Northern Iowa Cedar Falls, IA	74 70–75	$49,314/yr	18.5x
52	Florida Atlantic University Boca Raton, FL	74 71–75	$48,632/yr	34.0x
53	Florida State University Tallahassee, FL	74 71–75	$47,304/yr	31.6x
54	San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA	74 71–75	$46,310/yr	24.9x
55	Northwestern University Evanston, IL	73 69–75	$84,932/yr	3.8x
56	Columbia University in the City of New York New York, NY	73 69–75	$83,135/yr	3.9x
57	Yale University New Haven, CT	73 69–75	$82,617/yr	4.1x
58	Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD	73 70–75	$78,181/yr	4.7x
59	Swarthmore College Swarthmore, PA	73 69–74	$76,944/yr	4.4x
60	Santa Clara University Santa Clara, CA	73 69–74	$76,606/yr	4.4x
61	Colby College Waterville, ME	73 69–74	$76,401/yr	4.3x
62	University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN	73 69–74	$56,902/yr	11.7x
63	University of Delaware Newark, DE	73 69–74	$55,905/yr	12.1x
64	University of Maryland-Baltimore County Baltimore, MD	73 69–74	$54,859/yr	13.9x
65	Arizona State University Campus Immersion Tempe, AZ	73 69–74	$54,778/yr	14.5x
66	George Mason University Fairfax, VA	73 69–74	$53,024/yr	13.8x
67	University of Massachusetts-Amherst Amherst, MA	73 69–74	$52,309/yr	12.1x
68	University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Eau Claire, WI	73 69–74	$51,344/yr	17.4x
69	University of California-Santa Cruz Santa Cruz, CA	73 70–75	$50,518/yr	14.2x
70	California State University-Sacramento Sacramento, CA	73 69–74	$49,312/yr	21.3x
71	Missouri State University-Springfield Springfield, MO	73 71–74	$44,898/yr	22.3x
72	Colgate University Hamilton, NY	72 69–73	$77,274/yr	3.9x
73	University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN	72 68–73	$76,299/yr	3.8x
74	Bowdoin College Brunswick, ME	72 68–73	$75,867/yr	3.7x
75	Tufts University Medford, MA	72 68–73	$75,125/yr	3.6x
76	Washington and Lee University Lexington, VA	72 69–73	$71,737/yr	4.6x
77	Pomona College Claremont, CA	72 68–73	$70,051/yr	4.3x
78	California State University-Channel Islands Camarillo, CA	72 68–73	$57,440/yr	19.6x
79	Michigan State University East Lansing, MI	72 67–73	$54,013/yr	11.7x
80	University of Wisconsin-La Crosse La Crosse, WI	72 68–74	$53,595/yr	16.2x
81	Rutgers University-Camden Camden, NJ	72 68–73	$51,848/yr	11.8x
82	Rutgers University-New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ	72 68–73	$51,848/yr	11.7x
83	Rutgers University-Newark Newark, NJ	72 68–73	$51,848/yr	12.2x
84	University of California-San Diego La Jolla, CA	72 68–73	$51,192/yr	12.8x
85	Towson University Towson, MD	72 68–73	$50,910/yr	14.9x
86	University of California-Davis Davis, CA	72 68–73	$50,295/yr	13.2x
87	Texas A & M University-College Station College Station, TX	72 68–73	$49,738/yr	14.3x
88	University of South Florida Tampa, FL	72 68–73	$47,351/yr	23.6x
89	Ohio University-Eastern Campus Saint Clairsville, OH	72 69–73	$46,655/yr	25.2x
90	Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus Chillicothe, OH	72 69–73	$46,655/yr	25.2x
91	Ohio University-Southern Campus Ironton, OH	72 69–73	$46,655/yr	25.2x
92	Ohio University-Lancaster Campus Lancaster, OH	72 69–73	$46,655/yr	25.2x
93	Ohio University-Zanesville Campus Zanesville, OH	72 69–73	$46,655/yr	25.2x
94	The University of Texas at Arlington Arlington, TX	72 69–73	$46,416/yr	16.2x
95	California State University-East Bay Hayward, CA	72 69–73	$46,408/yr	23.4x
96	San Diego State University San Diego, CA	72 70–73	$44,125/yr	22.4x
97	Wellesley College Wellesley, MA	71 67–73	$86,367/yr	3.2x
98	Rice University Houston, TX	71 67–72	$78,814/yr	3.5x
99	Trinity College Hartford, CT	71 67–72	$71,191/yr	3.6x
100	College of the Holy Cross Worcester, MA	71 67–72	$69,288/yr	3.9x
101	William & Mary Williamsburg, VA	71 67–72	$65,603/yr	7.7x
102	The College of New Jersey Ewing, NJ	71 67–72	$62,218/yr	9.4x
103	University of New Hampshire-Main Campus Durham, NH	71 66–72	$54,328/yr	10.0x
104	University of Michigan-Dearborn Dearborn, MI	71 67–72	$49,665/yr	12.7x
105	State University of New York at New Paltz New Paltz, NY	71 68–72	$47,363/yr	18.9x
106	East Carolina University Greenville, NC	71 68–72	$46,425/yr	20.7x
107	Western Washington University Bellingham, WA	71 69–72	$45,401/yr	19.0x
108	Stony Brook University Stony Brook, NY	71 69–72	$44,349/yr	18.1x
109	University of Florida Gainesville, FL	71 70–72	$42,349/yr	30.2x
110	Florida International University Miami, FL	71 69–72	$42,314/yr	27.7x
111	Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA	70 66–71	$72,099/yr	3.2x
112	University of Missouri-Columbia Columbia, MO	70 66–71	$52,635/yr	11.9x
113	University of Connecticut-Waterbury Campus Waterbury, CT	70 66–71	$52,227/yr	10.5x
114	University of Connecticut-Avery Point Groton, CT	70 66–71	$52,227/yr	10.5x
115	University of Connecticut-Stamford Stamford, CT	70 66–71	$52,227/yr	10.5x
116	University of Connecticut-Hartford Campus Hartford, CT	70 66–71	$52,227/yr	10.5x
117	University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, CO	70 66–71	$51,521/yr	11.1x
118	St. Mary's College of Maryland St. Mary's City, MD	70 66–71	$51,483/yr	11.4x
119	Ohio State University-Main Campus Columbus, OH	70 66–71	$50,209/yr	13.2x
120	CUNY City College New York, NY	70 68–71	$45,556/yr	21.2x
121	University of Kansas Lawrence, KS	70 67–71	$45,420/yr	15.5x
122	California State University-Fullerton Fullerton, CA	70 70–71	$39,993/yr	29.4x
123	Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY	69 65–70	$79,845/yr	2.8x
124	Fairfield University Fairfield, CT	69 65–70	$74,023/yr	3.3x
125	Brown University Providence, RI	69 66–70	$72,064/yr	3.1x
126	Hamilton College Clinton, NY	69 65–70	$71,350/yr	3.1x
127	Emory University Atlanta, GA	69 65–70	$71,340/yr	3.3x
128	Bates College Lewiston, ME	69 66–70	$71,187/yr	3.3x
129	Providence College Providence, RI	69 65–70	$69,364/yr	3.3x
130	Elon University Elon, NC	69 66–70	$69,298/yr	4.4x
131	New York University New York, NY	69 65–70	$68,495/yr	3.3x
132	University of Richmond University of Richmond, VA	69 65–70	$61,027/yr	3.9x
133	Marist College Poughkeepsie, NY	69 65–70	$55,614/yr	5.3x
134	Millersville University of Pennsylvania Millersville, PA	69 65–70	$51,960/yr	12.6x
135	University of California-Merced Merced, CA	69 65–70	$51,212/yr	11.6x
136	University of Pittsburgh-Bradford Bradford, PA	69 65–70	$50,529/yr	11.6x
137	University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown Johnstown, PA	69 65–70	$50,529/yr	11.6x
138	Indiana University of Pennsylvania-Main Campus Indiana, PA	69 66–70	$46,860/yr	14.2x
139	Oregon State University Corvallis, OR	69 66–70	$45,708/yr	13.2x
140	Oregon State University-Cascades Campus Bend, OR	69 67–70	$45,708/yr	14.2x
141	Indiana University-Indianapolis Indianapolis, IN	69 66–70	$45,443/yr	15.8x
142	Bucknell University Lewisburg, PA	68 64–69	$70,946/yr	2.9x
143	Lafayette College Easton, PA	68 65–69	$68,164/yr	3.2x
144	George Washington University Washington, DC	68 64–69	$67,684/yr	3.0x
145	Carleton College Northfield, MN	68 64–69	$66,567/yr	3.1x
146	Union College Schenectady, NY	68 64–69	$62,846/yr	3.3x
147	Connecticut College New London, CT	68 64–69	$62,732/yr	3.2x
148	Bowling Green State University-Main Campus Bowling Green, OH	68 64–69	$52,864/yr	11.0x
149	University of Connecticut Storrs, CT	68 64–69	$52,227/yr	8.9x
150	University of North Texas Denton, TX	68 64–69	$51,316/yr	12.9x
151	University of Minnesota-Duluth Duluth, MN	68 64–69	$50,873/yr	11.0x
152	Colorado State University-Fort Collins Fort Collins, CO	68 65–69	$48,462/yr	12.5x
153	University of South Carolina-Columbia Columbia, SC	68 65–69	$48,149/yr	12.6x
154	Montana State University Bozeman, MT	68 65–69	$47,098/yr	17.2x
155	The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Knoxville, TN	68 65–69	$46,302/yr	12.4x
156	South Dakota State University Brookings, SD	68 65–69	$44,663/yr	16.4x
157	University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Milwaukee, WI	68 66–69	$44,327/yr	16.2x
158	SUNY College at Plattsburgh Plattsburgh, NY	68 66–69	$43,977/yr	17.7x
159	California State University-San Marcos San Marcos, CA	68 68–69	$40,155/yr	23.9x
160	Southern Methodist University Dallas, TX	67 63–68	$71,630/yr	2.8x
161	Drexel University Philadelphia, PA	67 64–69	$70,967/yr	3.0x
162	Northeastern University Boston, MA	67 64–68	$70,531/yr	2.9x
163	Villanova University Villanova, PA	67 63–68	$67,065/yr	2.9x
164	University of Rochester Rochester, NY	67 63–68	$63,475/yr	3.0x
165	DePauw University Greencastle, IN	67 63–68	$63,395/yr	3.3x
166	Gettysburg College Gettysburg, PA	67 63–68	$62,925/yr	3.0x
167	Spelman College Atlanta, GA	67 63–68	$59,907/yr	5.7x
168	University of Arizona Tucson, AZ	67 64–69	$47,908/yr	11.8x
169	The University of Texas at Dallas Richardson, TX	67 63–68	$47,034/yr	11.2x
170	University of Massachusetts-Boston Boston, MA	67 64–68	$46,523/yr	11.2x
171	University of Oregon Eugene, OR	67 64–68	$45,941/yr	11.3x
172	Northern Illinois University Dekalb, IL	67 64–68	$45,386/yr	12.6x
173	Texas Tech University Lubbock, TX	67 64–68	$44,292/yr	13.7x
174	University of New Mexico-Main Campus Albuquerque, NM	67 65–68	$43,656/yr	18.2x
175	Georgia State University Atlanta, GA	67 67–68	$40,598/yr	20.5x
176	California State Polytechnic University-Pomona Pomona, CA	67 68–68	$39,836/yr	24.1x
177	Washington State University Pullman, WA	67 67–68	$39,762/yr	16.3x
178	Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC	66 62–68	$56,416/yr	3.2x
179	Creighton University Omaha, NE	66 62–67	$54,827/yr	4.1x
180	Grand Valley State University Allendale, MI	66 62–67	$53,985/yr	9.8x
181	Fort Hays State University Hays, KS	66 62–67	$50,690/yr	21.5x
182	Wayne State University Detroit, MI	66 63–68	$50,648/yr	10.5x
183	Central Michigan University Mount Pleasant, MI	66 62–67	$48,636/yr	10.6x
184	Portland State University Portland, OR	66 63–67	$47,865/yr	12.7x
185	University of Colorado Colorado Springs Colorado Springs, CO	66 63–67	$46,748/yr	14.3x
186	North Carolina A & T State University Greensboro, NC	66 63–67	$45,446/yr	19.0x
187	Macalester College Saint Paul, MN	65 61–66	$59,752/yr	2.7x
188	Trinity University San Antonio, TX	65 60–66	$57,482/yr	3.3x
189	Brandeis University Waltham, MA	65 61–66	$57,299/yr	2.9x
190	Pace University New York, NY	65 61–66	$51,426/yr	3.9x
191	University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA	65 61–66	$50,529/yr	7.6x
192	University of Missouri-St Louis Saint Louis, MO	65 62–66	$46,583/yr	11.2x
193	Virginia Military Institute Lexington, VA	65 62–66	$46,046/yr	8.8x
194	Cleveland State University Cleveland, OH	65 62–66	$44,759/yr	12.1x
195	CUNY Lehman College Bronx, NY	65 62–66	$44,258/yr	17.3x
196	University of California-Irvine Irvine, CA	65 63–66	$44,087/yr	11.8x
197	SUNY Buffalo State University Buffalo, NY	65 64–66	$41,547/yr	17.5x
198	John Carroll University University Heights, OH	64 60–65	$65,098/yr	3.1x
199	Oberlin College Oberlin, OH	64 60–65	$61,713/yr	2.6x
200	Rhodes College Memphis, TN	64 60–65	$57,814/yr	3.1x
201	University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA	64 60–65	$57,060/yr	2.6x
202	Ball State University Muncie, IN	64 59–65	$56,782/yr	12.2x
203	Western Kentucky University Bowling Green, KY	64 60–65	$53,857/yr	10.9x
204	California State University-Stanislaus Turlock, CA	64 60–65	$51,815/yr	15.6x
205	Temple University Philadelphia, PA	64 60–65	$48,242/yr	7.4x
206	University of Central Florida Orlando, FL	64 60–65	$47,743/yr	17.7x
207	Florida Gulf Coast University Fort Myers, FL	64 60–65	$47,344/yr	18.3x
208	Ohio University-Main Campus Athens, OH	64 61–65	$46,655/yr	10.8x
209	Christopher Newport University Newport News, VA	64 62–65	$45,309/yr	10.0x
210	Radford University Radford, VA	64 62–65	$45,189/yr	11.9x
211	University of Mary Washington Fredericksburg, VA	64 62–65	$45,153/yr	10.8x
212	University of Central Missouri Warrensburg, MO	64 64–65	$41,076/yr	15.7x
213	University of West Georgia Carrollton, GA	64 64–65	$39,899/yr	23.7x
214	CUNY Queens College Queens, NY	64 65–65	$39,377/yr	20.5x
215	California State University-Long Beach Long Beach, CA	64 66–65	$38,475/yr	22.9x
216	California State University-Chico Chico, CA	64 66–64	$37,432/yr	21.7x
217	Muhlenberg College Allentown, PA	63 59–64	$59,122/yr	2.6x
218	University of San Francisco San Francisco, CA	63 59–64	$58,046/yr	2.8x
219	Gustavus Adolphus College Saint Peter, MN	63 59–64	$52,439/yr	3.2x
220	Washington & Jefferson College Washington, PA	63 59–64	$50,402/yr	5.7x
221	CUNY York College Jamaica, NY	63 59–64	$47,940/yr	15.3x
222	Clemson University Clemson, SC	63 61–64	$45,075/yr	9.9x
223	Illinois State University Normal, IL	63 61–64	$44,015/yr	10.2x
224	Central Connecticut State University New Britain, CT	63 62–64	$41,910/yr	12.5x
225	Westfield State University Westfield, MA	63 62–64	$41,085/yr	13.1x
226	University at Buffalo Buffalo, NY	63 63–64	$40,078/yr	14.9x
227	Princeton University Princeton, NJ	62 58–63	$103,041/yr	3.3x
228	Hobart William Smith Colleges Geneva, NY	62 58–63	$61,946/yr	2.3x
229	University of St Thomas Saint Paul, MN	62 58–63	$60,323/yr	2.7x
230	University of Cincinnati-Main Campus Cincinnati, OH	62 58–63	$58,590/yr	9.8x
231	Kent State University at Kent Kent, OH	62 57–63	$56,731/yr	10.0x
232	Canisius University Buffalo, NY	62 58–63	$55,786/yr	4.2x
233	Boston University Boston, MA	62 57–63	$55,733/yr	2.4x
234	Fordham University Bronx, NY	62 58–63	$55,020/yr	2.6x
235	Saint Johns University Collegeville, MN	62 58–63	$54,752/yr	2.9x
236	Siena College Loudonville, NY	62 58–63	$54,328/yr	3.4x
237	Western Colorado University Gunnison, CO	62 57–63	$53,403/yr	11.0x
238	Centre College Danville, KY	62 58–63	$51,077/yr	3.2x
239	St. John's University-New York Queens, NY	62 59–63	$45,301/yr	3.9x
240	California State University-Northridge Northridge, CA	62 66–63	$35,628/yr	24.4x
241	Washington University in St Louis Saint Louis, MO	61 57–62	$66,325/yr	2.1x
242	Occidental College Los Angeles, CA	61 57–62	$64,885/yr	2.2x
243	The University of the South Sewanee, TN	61 57–62	$58,532/yr	2.6x
244	Kenyon College Gambier, OH	61 56–62	$58,082/yr	2.1x
245	St Olaf College Northfield, MN	61 57–62	$56,238/yr	2.6x
246	Texas Christian University Fort Worth, TX	61 57–62	$54,462/yr	2.7x
247	Dickinson College Carlisle, PA	61 57–62	$53,990/yr	2.5x
248	Stonehill College Easton, MA	61 57–62	$53,303/yr	2.8x
249	Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA	61 56–62	$53,206/yr	2.6x
250	Wabash College Crawfordsville, IN	61 57–62	$51,815/yr	3.0x
251	California State University-San Bernardino San Bernardino, CA	61 64–62	$37,679/yr	19.7x
252	Eastern Washington University Cheney, WA	61 63–61	$37,368/yr	18.1x
253	CUNY Hunter College New York, NY	61 66–62	$34,580/yr	25.4x
254	Smith College Northampton, MA	60 56–61	$71,559/yr	2.0x
255	American University Washington, DC	60 56–61	$58,151/yr	2.4x
256	Colorado College Colorado Springs, CO	60 56–61	$58,082/yr	2.1x
257	St Lawrence University Canton, NY	60 56–61	$57,829/yr	2.2x
258	Syracuse University Syracuse, NY	60 56–61	$55,974/yr	2.3x
259	Denison University Granville, OH	60 56–61	$55,087/yr	2.3x
260	Washington College Chestertown, MD	60 56–61	$50,835/yr	2.8x
261	Worcester State University Worcester, MA	60 56–61	$50,463/yr	10.2x
262	University of Nevada-Reno Reno, NV	60 57–61	$47,766/yr	12.3x
263	Whitman College Walla Walla, WA	60 56–61	$46,832/yr	2.8x
264	Gonzaga University Spokane, WA	60 57–61	$44,845/yr	3.4x
265	Bridgewater State University Bridgewater, MA	60 58–61	$43,682/yr	11.2x
266	William Paterson University of New Jersey Wayne, NJ	60 59–61	$43,148/yr	9.6x
267	University of Kentucky Lexington, KY	60 59–61	$41,713/yr	10.9x
268	Northeastern Illinois University Chicago, IL	60 60–61	$40,004/yr	12.1x
269	University of Illinois Chicago Chicago, IL	60 62–60	$37,767/yr	12.3x
270	Georgetown University Washington, DC	59 55–61	$84,460/yr	2.2x
271	Pepperdine University Malibu, CA	59 55–60	$54,267/yr	2.1x
272	Hampden-Sydney College Hampden-Sydney, VA	59 55–60	$52,155/yr	2.7x
273	University of Southern Maine Portland, ME	59 55–60	$49,173/yr	10.3x
274	Boise State University Boise, ID	59 56–60	$46,137/yr	12.1x
275	Augsburg University Minneapolis, MN	59 56–60	$45,720/yr	3.6x
276	University of Rhode Island Kingston, RI	59 58–60	$43,444/yr	8.7x
277	Southern Utah University Cedar City, UT	59 57–60	$43,266/yr	15.0x
278	University at Albany Albany, NY	59 62–60	$37,188/yr	15.0x
279	Lake Forest College Lake Forest, IL	58 53–59	$53,529/yr	2.4x
280	Ursinus College Collegeville, PA	58 53–59	$52,496/yr	2.3x
281	Seton Hall University South Orange, NJ	58 54–59	$51,464/yr	2.7x
282	Lebanon Valley College Annville, PA	58 54–60	$51,183/yr	2.7x
283	Tulane University of Louisiana New Orleans, LA	58 55–59	$46,386/yr	2.4x
284	College of Staten Island CUNY Staten Island, NY	58 56–59	$43,227/yr	13.4x
285	University of North Florida Jacksonville, FL	58 57–59	$41,519/yr	15.2x
286	SUNY at Purchase College Purchase, NY	58 63–59	$34,297/yr	18.7x
287	Arizona State University Digital Immersion Scottsdale, AZ	57 53–58	$54,778/yr	—
288	Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH	57 53–58	$53,148/yr	2.1x
289	Marquette University Milwaukee, WI	57 54–58	$46,400/yr	2.9x
290	Morehouse College Atlanta, GA	57 57–58	$40,726/yr	5.5x
291	Rowan University Glassboro, NJ	57 59–58	$38,580/yr	10.1x
292	Appalachian State University Boone, NC	57 62–58	$33,742/yr	20.9x
293	CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice New York, NY	57 62–57	$33,709/yr	20.3x
294	St Catherine University Saint Paul, MN	56 52–57	$64,916/yr	2.3x
295	Whitworth University Spokane, WA	56 52–57	$63,134/yr	2.1x
296	Wheaton College Wheaton, IL	56 53–57	$62,889/yr	2.6x
297	Allegheny College Meadville, PA	56 52–57	$51,722/yr	2.2x
298	Saint Michael's College Colchester, VT	56 52–57	$47,211/yr	2.6x
299	University of Maine Orono, ME	56 53–57	$46,159/yr	8.2x
300	Willamette University Salem, OR	56 53–57	$45,993/yr	2.8x
301	University of California-Riverside Riverside, CA	56 58–56	$37,149/yr	10.8x
302	State University of New York at Oswego Oswego, NY	56 62–57	$31,597/yr	19.8x
303	University of Nevada-Las Vegas Las Vegas, NV	56 62–57	$30,432/yr	19.9x
304	Assumption University Worcester, MA	55 50–56	$58,954/yr	2.0x
305	The University of Tampa Tampa, FL	55 51–56	$54,284/yr	3.1x
306	Franklin and Marshall College Lancaster, PA	55 51–56	$52,801/yr	1.8x
307	Hanover College Hanover, IN	55 52–56	$45,740/yr	3.0x
308	University of Northern Colorado Greeley, CO	55 52–56	$45,257/yr	8.4x
309	Pitzer College Claremont, CA	54 50–55	$59,767/yr	1.4x
310	Olivet Nazarene University Bourbonnais, IL	54 50–55	$54,169/yr	2.6x
311	Grinnell College Grinnell, IA	54 51–55	$46,791/yr	2.0x
312	Furman University Greenville, SC	53 49–54	$55,615/yr	1.4x
313	Moravian University Bethlehem, PA	53 48–54	$53,999/yr	1.6x
314	Saint Norbert College De Pere, WI	53 49–54	$53,350/yr	2.0x
315	North Central College Naperville, IL	53 49–54	$52,728/yr	2.0x
316	Texas State University San Marcos, TX	53 52–54	$43,064/yr	8.4x
317	University of Central Arkansas Conway, AR	53 52–54	$41,919/yr	9.4x
318	University of Dallas Irving, TX	52 48–53	$55,732/yr	1.9x
319	Reed College Portland, OR	52 47–53	$53,110/yr	1.0x
320	Bryant University Smithfield, RI	52 48–53	$52,020/yr	1.5x
321	Emmanuel College Boston, MA	52 48–53	$51,698/yr	1.8x
322	University of Puget Sound Tacoma, WA	52 48–53	$48,153/yr	1.9x
323	Hendrix College Conway, AR	52 52–53	$40,445/yr	3.8x
324	University of Vermont Burlington, VT	51 52–52	$38,452/yr	6.9x
325	Southern Illinois University-Carbondale Carbondale, IL	51 53–52	$37,798/yr	9.3x
326	University of Hawaii at Manoa Honolulu, HI	51 55–52	$35,041/yr	11.0x
327	Quinnipiac University Hamden, CT	50 46–51	$48,340/yr	1.3x
328	Monmouth College Monmouth, IL	50 47–51	$47,048/yr	1.7x
329	University of Massachusetts-Lowell Lowell, MA	50 49–51	$41,910/yr	5.3x
330	Albion College Albion, MI	49 46–50	$48,756/yr	1.8x
331	Goucher College Baltimore, MD	49 46–50	$46,774/yr	1.3x
332	DePaul University Chicago, IL	49 52–50	$37,151/yr	3.3x
333	Lewis & Clark College Portland, OR	48 44–49	$49,576/yr	1.4x
334	Rollins College Winter Park, FL	48 52–49	$36,115/yr	2.8x
335	Drew University Madison, NJ	48 53–49	$33,639/yr	3.9x
336	University of North Carolina Asheville Asheville, NC	48 53–49	$28,301/yr	17.2x
337	Pacific Lutheran University Tacoma, WA	47 45–48	$43,806/yr	1.1x
338	University of Miami Coral Gables, FL	47 46–48	$42,129/yr	1.8x
339	Montclair State University Montclair, NJ	47 48–48	$39,375/yr	5.7x
340	Kalamazoo College Kalamazoo, MI	45 44–46	$42,508/yr	0.8x
341	Coe College Cedar Rapids, IA	45 44–46	$42,311/yr	1.0x
342	Seattle Pacific University Seattle, WA	45 45–46	$41,502/yr	1.7x
343	Clark University Worcester, MA	45 50–46	$34,023/yr	2.9x
344	Calvin University Grand Rapids, MI	44 43–46	$43,746/yr	2.1x
345	California State University-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA	44 49–45	$32,877/yr	11.1x
346	Austin College Sherman, TX	40 45–41	$33,957/yr	2.7x
347	Carthage College Kenosha, WI	39 42–40	$36,493/yr	1.5x
348	University of Dayton Dayton, OH	38 43–39	$34,671/yr	2.3x
349	Winston-Salem State University Winston-Salem, NC	37 41–38	$25,653/yr	8.5x
350	Eastern Michigan University Ypsilanti, MI	36 42–37	$30,569/yr	3.9x
351	Knox College Galesburg, IL	33 35–34	$23,222/yr	2.1x

Highest Earning Economics Programs

Schools where Economics graduates earn the most in their first year after graduation.

School	1-Year Earnings	DW Score
Harvard University	$103,993/yr	77
Princeton University	$103,041/yr	62
Duke University	$98,649/yr	76
Stanford University	$98,104/yr	76
Dartmouth College	$94,675/yr	76
University of Chicago	$92,075/yr	75
Amherst College	$90,568/yr	75
Claremont McKenna College	$89,505/yr	75
University of Pennsylvania	$89,097/yr	75
Wellesley College	$86,367/yr	71

Best ROI for Economics

Schools with the highest earnings-to-tuition ratio for Economics.

School	ROI Multiple	Earnings	DW Score
Brigham Young University	37.1x	$63,332/yr	82
Florida Atlantic University	34.0x	$48,632/yr	74
Florida State University	31.6x	$47,304/yr	74
University of Florida	30.2x	$42,349/yr	71
Sonoma State University	29.7x	$53,825/yr	80
California State University-Fullerton	29.4x	$39,993/yr	70
Florida International University	27.7x	$42,314/yr	71
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	25.9x	$65,344/yr	82
CUNY Hunter College	25.4x	$34,580/yr	61
Ohio University-Eastern Campus	25.2x	$46,655/yr	72

Want to compare two Economics programs side by side? Use the comparison tool →

Related Majors

Explore similar fields of study.

Consider the Trade Route

Not sure a 4-year degree is the right path? Trade programs in Economics offer shorter timelines, lower debt, and strong AI resilience for hands-on careers.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do Economics graduates earn?

Across 351 schools, Economics graduates earn an average of $53,967 per year in their first year after graduation. Earnings range from $23,222 to $103,993 depending on the school.

What is the AI automation risk for Economics?

Economics is rated "Very High" for AI automation risk, with an average of 59% of job tasks exposed to large language models and AI tools. This means most career tasks in this field could be augmented or replaced by AI over the next decade.

Which school has the best Economics program?

Based on our DegreeOutlook Score (combining earnings, AI resilience, job market size, and ROI), University of California-Berkeley ranks #1 for Economics with a score of 84/100 and graduate earnings of $80,446/yr.

What's the outlook for a Economics degree?

On average, Economics graduates earn 10.1x their in-state tuition over 10 years. This is a strong return on investment.

Scores use College Scorecard earnings, BLS employment projections, and AI task-exposure research. See full methodology →