5 college degrees that make the most money
The COVID-19 fallout has made it tougher on young grads entering the job market
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Now is an unprecedented time to graduate college, as the coronavirus pandemic forces universities to cancel the rest of their semesters and move commencement speeches online.
Even as young graduates exit the classroom, they may face trouble entering the job market. U.S. employers cut 20.5 million jobs in April, pushing the unemployment rate to 14.7 percent, the highest level since the Great Depression, which shrank the U.S. workforce by 8.8 million jobs.
In June 2009, when the Great Recession ended, the unemployment rate for college graduates, ages 20 to 24, was 10.8 percent, according to Federal Reserve economic data. Compare that to April of this year, when the jobless rate for college grads was even higher, at 17.2 percent.
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Still, there are a number of college degrees that lend themselves to high starting salaries. The career website Monster.com analyzed The National Association of Colleges and Employers Winter 2020 Salary Survey Report to find the average starting salaries for recent graduates with several popular majors.
Here were the top five, according to figures gathered between September and December 2019:
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1. Engineering
Average starting salary: $69,961 (up from 2019's $69,188).
Young engineer with quality control inspector in factory. Shallow DOF. Developed from RAW; retouched with special care and attention; Small amount of grain added for best final impression. 16 bit Adobe RGB color profile.
2. Computer science
Average starting salary: $67,411 (down from 2019’s $67,539).
Closeup side view of a control room at a modern industrial production line with a control person in charge keeping track of the process on a computer.
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3. Math and sciences
Average starting salary: $62,488 (up from 2019’s $62,177).
A researcher at Protein Sciences moves a vial in a lab. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill). (Associated Press)
4. Business
Average starting salary: $57,939 (up from 2019’s $57,657).
Cropped shot of a handsome young businessman sitting alone in his home office and talking on his cellphone
5. Social sciences
Average starting salary: $57,425 (up from 2019’s $57,310).
Male teacher talking to a large group of students in a class at a computer lab.