College Degrees That Earn the Most Money
New college graduates who have a background in engineering can expect to cash in when they hit the job market, a new study finds.
Research from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) found that six different engineering specialties are among the 10 highest-paid majors for recent college grads.
Specifically, computer engineering majors take home the highest staring salary of $70,400. Chemical engineering, aerospace/aeronautical/astronautical engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical/electronics and communications engineering and civil engineering were also among the 10 highest-paid starting salaries for recent grads.
"This is not surprising since the supply of these graduates is low, but the demand for them is so high,"said NACE executive director Marilyn Mackes.
The average starting salaries for the other majors in the top 10 are:
Chemical Engineering: $66,400
Computer Science: $64,400
Aerospace/Aeronautical/Astronautical Engineering: $64,000
Mechanical Engineering: $62,900
Electrical/Electronics and Communications Engineering: $62,300
Civil Engineering: $57,600
Finance: $57,300
Construction Science/Management: $56,600
Information Sciences and Systems: $56,100
Overall, the study found that the average starting salary of all new college grads is $44,455, up 3.4 percent from a year ago. Among the broad categories of majors, education, up 5.4 percent, business, up 4.2 percent, and communications, up 4.1 percent, experienced the largest increases to their average starting salaries.
The research was based on data from approximately 400,000 employers.
This story was provided by BusinessNewsDaily, a sister site to LiveScience. Follow Chad Brooks on Twitter @cbrooks76 or BusinessNewsDaily @BNDarticles. We're also on Facebook & Google+.
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