{
  "id": 14481782,
  "title": "Inside the college majors at elite universities where graduates earn more than $250,000—over 4 times their peers",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/14/inside-the-college-majors-at-elite-universities-where-graduates-earn",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-10-14T15:01:44.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Fortune",
    "slug": "fortune",
    "url": "https://fortune.com/2026/10/14/college-majors-at-elite-universities-with-earnings-over-two-hundred-thousand-dollars-gen-z-education-struggles/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In an era marked by tight job markets, rising student debt, and looming AI disruption, more recent college graduates are wondering if the investment in a higher education outweighs the cost. However, according to fresh data from research firm HEA Group, certain degree programs are delivering strikingly high median incomes. Mathematics majors from Duke University are earning a median annual salary of $297,029 four years after graduation, nearly five times the $64,500 median earnings for all graduates. Carnegie Mellon University also tops the list with computer science graduates reporting median earnings of $268,121 and electrical, electronics, and communications engineering graduates at $250,168. These impressive figures are attributed to the strong demand for technical expertise in industries like finance and technology. Dean Burcu Akinci of Carnegie Mellon’s engineering college attributes the high salaries to the rapid pace of technological change and the need for innovative problem solvers. While these high earners present a compelling case for certain majors, the overall picture is more nuanced. At Carnegie Mellon, for instance, only 17 mathematics graduates contributed to the $297,029 median, and the data covers around 2,000 students across 20 high-earning programs. The figures represent a snapshot of the job market in 2017-2018, before AI and market shifts took hold. Computer engineering graduates, for example, faced a 7.8% unemployment rate in 2024, the highest among majors. Additionally, programs that fail to meet federal earnings benchmarks could lose access to crucial student loan funding, putting short-term vocational programs at particular risk. Critics argue that while college offers broader benefits, students should question whether their chosen major provides a viable path to repay the substantial debt often required for elite degrees.",
  "summary": "Carnegie Mellon had six programs whose graduates earned more than $150,000 annually—the most of any university on the list.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}