You can secure a high-paying job with just about any college major, or even without getting your degree.
But if you are looking for a field of study that historically produces highly paid graduates, an engineering degree might be your best bet.
Electrical engineering and computer engineering lead the rankings of majors with the highest median salaries and are just two of eight engineering degrees among the top 10, according to a recent Bankrate analysis of the Census Bureau's American Community Survey data.
To compile the list, Bankrate looked at the most recent census data for bachelor's degree-holders between the ages of 18 and 77 who were in the labor force and either employed or seeking work.
Those with electrical engineering degrees earn a median annual salary of $110,000, while computer engineering grads earn a median of $104,000.
Pharmacy, pharmaceutical sciences, and administration takes the No. 3 spot with a median salary of $100,000, but stands out in the rankings as one of just two non-engineering degrees in the top 10.
These are the majors with the highest median salaries:
1. Electrical engineering
- Median salary: $110,000
2. Computer engineering
- Median salary: $104,000
3. Pharmacy, pharmaceutical sciences, and administration
- Median salary: $100,000
4. Chemical engineering
- Median salary: $100,000
5. Computer science
- Median salary: $100,000
6. Aerospace engineering
- Median salary: $100,000
7. Materials engineering and materials science
- Median salary: $98,500
8. Engineering mechanics, physics, and science
- Median salary: $95,000
9. Mechanical engineering
- Median salary: $95,000
10. Industrial and manufacturing engineering
- Median salary: $90,000
Should we all be engineers?
Projected earnings should not be your only consideration when choosing a college major or a career path. Salary data can and should help inform those decisions, but there are other important considerations you should make.
For starters, your success in a field — both academically and career-wise — is often strongly correlated to your interest in that field, says Christine Cruzvergara, chief education strategy officer at Handshake, a job platform for early talent and Gen Z.
If math and science don't excite you, it may be hard to motivate yourself to get through those classes and deal with the same subjects every day once you start applying to jobs and working.
"Employers can tell [if you're interested] when they're interviewing you." Cruzvergara tells CNBC Make It. "They're going to ask you questions about what you studied, your projects and about the role that you're trying to go into. And if you don't sound interested, people can tell the difference."
Looking for a job within an industry with a high median salary may offer you a better shot at finding a well-paying position, but it's not guaranteed. And on the flip side, you may find a company or position that pays abnormally well in a field with a lower median salary.
In either case, you'll want to have a well-rounded education that gives you the skills and experiences that are applicable to a variety of industries. You can do that by being an engineering major and taking additional humanities classes or finding creative roles within a tech company, for example.
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