Marketing Degree

502 schools compared · Average earnings $45,450/yr

Students study consumer behavior, market research, brand strategy, digital marketing, advertising, and the promotion of products and services across traditional and digital channels. Graduates typically pursue careers as marketing managers, brand managers, digital marketing specialists, market research analysts, and social media strategists at agencies and corporations. Marketing offers creative career paths with strong earning potential, especially in digital and data-driven marketing roles.

What Marketing Graduates Do

Your first job with a marketing degree is likely as a market research analyst or specialist. You’ll spend your days digging into consumer data, tracking campaign performance in analytics dashboards, and reporting on what’s working and what isn’t. As you gain experience, you can advance to become a marketing manager, where you’ll shift from executing tasks to setting strategy, managing budgets, and leading a team. Other common paths include sales management or specializing in a high-growth field like web and digital interface design. While most marketing roles are expanding, traditional advertising management positions face headwinds as spending moves online.

AI is reshaping this work. For most roles, it will automate routine data analysis and content creation, shifting your focus to strategy and creative problem-solving. For technical paths like digital design, the change is more profound. AI can generate initial layouts and code, meaning your value lies in architecting the user experience and making critical judgment calls on AI-generated work. Success will depend on your ability to adapt and leverage these new tools.

Schools Offering
502
Avg Grad Earnings
$45,450/yr
Avg DegreeOutlook Score
55/100
AI Automation Risk
Very High
57% task exposure

Common Career Paths

Where Marketing graduates typically work, ranked by salary. Salary ranges show 25th–75th percentile spread. This field has roughly 204,300 combined openings per year.

Career Path Salary Range Openings/yr Growth AI Risk
Marketing managers
$161,030
$111K$211K
34,300 +6.6% 50%
Sales managers
$138,060
$96K$201K
49,000 +4.7% 45%
Advertising and promotions managers
$126,960
$86K$179K
2,100 -2.2% 48%
Fundraising managers
$123,480
$93K$166K
3,600 +4.2% 56%
Web and digital interface designers
$98,090
$65K$142K
9,100 +7.0% 67%
Business teachers, postsecondary
$97,270
$63K$140K
8,100 +5.7% 49%
Market research analysts and marketing specialists
$76,950
$56K$105K
87,200 +6.7% 55%
Fundraisers
$66,490
$53K$85K
10,200 +4.3% 52%
Survey researchers
$63,380
$46K$85K
700 -5.2% 62%
Marketing managers
$161,030
$111K $211K
34,300 openings/yr +6.6% growth 50% AI risk
Sales managers
$138,060
$96K $201K
49,000 openings/yr +4.7% growth 45% AI risk
Advertising and promotions managers
$126,960
$86K $179K
2,100 openings/yr -2.2% growth 48% AI risk
Fundraising managers
$123,480
$93K $166K
3,600 openings/yr +4.2% growth 56% AI risk
Web and digital interface designers
$98,090
$65K $142K
9,100 openings/yr +7.0% growth 67% AI risk
Business teachers, postsecondary
$97,270
$63K $140K
8,100 openings/yr +5.7% growth 49% AI risk
Market research analysts and marketing specialists
$76,950
$56K $105K
87,200 openings/yr +6.7% growth 55% AI risk
Fundraisers
$66,490
$53K $85K
10,200 openings/yr +4.3% growth 52% AI risk
Survey researchers
$63,380
$46K $85K
700 openings/yr -5.2% growth 62% AI risk

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

Best Schools for Marketing

Top 20 of 502 schools ranked by DegreeOutlook Score. Click any row for full AI scenario analysis and earnings projections.

# School DW Score Earnings ROI
1 Brigham Young University
Provo, UT
78
72–79
$64,256/yr 36.4x
2 University of Wisconsin-Madison
Madison, WI
76
71–77
$65,224/yr 21.1x
3 University of Maryland-College Park
College Park, MD
74
69–75
$61,578/yr 18.8x
4 The University of Texas at Austin
Austin, TX
74
67–75
$59,428/yr 18.1x
5 University of Florida
Gainesville, FL
74
68–75
$56,454/yr 30.6x
6 Utah Valley University
Orem, UT
74
67–75
$54,173/yr 31.5x
7 University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus
Norman, OK
73
67–74
$57,331/yr 20.6x
8 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Champaign, IL
72
67–73
$69,273/yr 12.9x
9 James Madison University
Harrisonburg, VA
72
66–73
$61,692/yr 14.8x
10 University of Utah
Salt Lake City, UT
72
66–73
$56,011/yr 19.7x
11 Ohio University-Eastern Campus
Saint Clairsville, OH
72
66–73
$55,022/yr 28.5x
12 Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus
Chillicothe, OH
72
66–73
$55,022/yr 28.5x
13 Ohio University-Southern Campus
Ironton, OH
72
66–73
$55,022/yr 28.5x
14 Ohio University-Lancaster Campus
Lancaster, OH
72
66–73
$55,022/yr 28.5x
15 Ohio University-Zanesville Campus
Zanesville, OH
72
66–73
$55,022/yr 28.5x
16 Utah State University
Logan, UT
72
65–73
$54,562/yr 20.1x
17 Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL
72
66–73
$49,808/yr 33.6x
18 Binghamton University
Vestal, NY
72
66–73
$47,922/yr 22.3x
19 Colorado State University Global
Aurora, CO
71
65–72
$55,814/yr 20.2x
20 University of Arizona
Tucson, AZ
71
65–72
$55,066/yr 15.5x

Highest Earning Marketing Programs

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

School 1-Year Earnings DW Score
University of Pennsylvania $82,553/yr 67
Georgetown University $74,819/yr 64
Bucknell University $70,868/yr 62
Washington University in St Louis $70,819/yr 51
Villanova University $69,633/yr 62
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign $69,273/yr 72
Texas Christian University $68,497/yr 62
Boston College $66,227/yr 64
University of Wisconsin-Madison $65,224/yr 76
Brigham Young University $64,256/yr 78

Best ROI for Marketing

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

School ROI Multiple Earnings DW Score
Brigham Young University 36.4x $64,256/yr 78
Florida State University 33.6x $49,808/yr 72
Utah Valley University 31.5x $54,173/yr 74
University of North Georgia 31.0x $43,504/yr 66
Western Carolina University 30.7x $33,197/yr 56
University of Florida 30.6x $56,454/yr 74
Florida Atlantic University 29.4x $41,995/yr 64
Ohio University-Eastern Campus 28.5x $55,022/yr 72
Ohio University-Chillicothe Campus 28.5x $55,022/yr 72
Ohio University-Southern Campus 28.5x $55,022/yr 72
Want to compare two Marketing 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 Marketing offer shorter timelines, lower debt, and strong AI resilience for hands-on careers.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do Marketing graduates earn?
Across 502 schools, Marketing graduates earn an average of $45,450 per year in their first year after graduation. Earnings range from $10,614 to $82,553 depending on the school.
What is the AI automation risk for Marketing?
Marketing is rated "Very High" for AI automation risk, with an average of 57% 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 Marketing program?
Based on our DegreeOutlook Score (combining earnings, AI resilience, job market size, and ROI), Brigham Young University ranks #1 for Marketing with a score of 78/100 and graduate earnings of $64,256/yr.
What's the outlook for a Marketing degree?
On average, Marketing graduates earn 10.0x 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 →