Psychology

Psychology · federal classification: Psychology, General

Psychology graduates with a bachelor's typically earned about $49,543, measured a few years after finishing (median across US programs, College Scorecard).
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Median earnings by degree level

Earnings range across schools, by degree levelEach row is a degree level: the bar is the middle half of schools' program medians (25th to 75th percentile) and the dot is the overall median. Associate's median $39,201, $35,286 to $42,484; Bachelor's median $49,543, $44,852 to $54,460; Master's median $65,760, $58,231 to $75,549; Doctoral median $95,771, $85,091 to $109,867.$35k$73k$110kAssociate's$39,201Bachelor's$49,543Master's$65,760Doctoral$95,771
DegreeMedian earningsTypical rangeSchoolsClear the bar
Associate's Degree$39,201$35,286 to $42,48410771%
Bachelor's Degree$49,543$44,852 to $54,460107996%
Master's Degree$65,760$58,231 to $75,54910599%
Doctoral Degree$95,771$85,091 to $109,86745100%

"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 +4% (2024 to 2034), about 125,000 openings a year across the occupations this field commonly leads to.

OccupationMedian payGrowthOpenings/yr
Managers, All Other$136,550+4.5%106,700
Social Science Research Assistants$58,040+4.4%5,200
Clinical and Counseling Psychologists$95,830+11.2%4,800
Psychology Teachers, Postsecondary$80,330+3.6%4,000
Psychologists, All Other$117,580+4.3%3,900
Industrial-Organizational Psychologists$109,840+6.3%400

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.

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.