Operations Research
Engineering
Median earnings by degree level
| Degree | Median earnings | Typical range | Schools | Clear the bar |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's Degree | $119,618 | $80,846 to $148,502 | 6 | 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 +8% (2025 to 2035), about 20,600 openings a year across the occupations this field commonly leads to.
| Occupation | Median pay | Growth | Openings/yr |
|---|---|---|---|
| Natural Sciences Managers | $167,220 | +8.2% | 9,200 |
| Operations Research Analysts | $88,940 | +11.9% | 7,500 |
| Engineering Teachers, Postsecondary | $109,270 | +7.8% | 3,900 |
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 operations research program, of 37 that report one. Ordered by number of completions only: this is where people study it, not a judgement about where to.
- Columbia University in the City of New York
- University of California-Berkeley
- Cornell University
- Naval Postgraduate School
- Princeton University
- Air Force Institute of Technology-Graduate School of Engineering & Management
- Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus
- United States Naval Academy
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.