Management Science
Business & Management · federal classification: Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods
Median earnings by degree level
| Degree | Median earnings | Typical range | Schools | Clear the bar |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma | $84,426 | $70,642 to $88,559 | 6 | 100% |
| Bachelor's Degree | $83,603 | $68,901 to $97,432 | 120 | 100% |
| Graduate/Professional Certificate | $116,221 | $105,347 to $129,799 | 10 | 100% |
| Master's Degree | $117,978 | $99,990 to $135,728 | 116 | 100% |
"Clear the bar" is the share of programs whose graduates out-earn a typical high-school graduate (the federal earnings-premium test). Typical range is the 25th to 75th percentile of program medians.
Job outlook
Projected employment growth +7% (2025 to 2035), about 457,600 openings a year across the occupations this field commonly leads to.
| Occupation | Median pay | Growth | Openings/yr |
|---|---|---|---|
| General and Operations Managers | $105,770 | +5% | 285,000 |
| Management Analysts | $101,860 | +10.1% | 94,100 |
| Data Scientists | $120,230 | +34.6% | 24,800 |
| Chief Executives | $213,990 | +3.2% | 19,100 |
| Business Teachers, Postsecondary | $99,080 | +5.9% | 7,600 |
| Operations Research Analysts | $88,940 | +11.9% | 7,500 |
Occupation pay and outlook: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS wages, Employment Projections). A field maps to several occupations, and the same occupations serve many majors, so these are the jobs this major commonly leads to, not positions reserved for its graduates; the openings should not be added up across majors.
Where this is studied
The 8 colleges where the most students complete a management science program, of 507 that report one. Ordered by number of completions only: this is where people study it, not a judgement about where to.
- University of Southern California
- Northwestern University
- Columbia University in the City of New York
- Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus
- University of Chicago
- New York University
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
- University of California-Los Angeles
Earnings source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (release 2026-06-10), median earnings of graduates measured up to four years after completing. Figures describe past graduates and are never a promise. Method: methodology. Report an error.