This year’s college graduates face mixed earnings growth, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE). But average college graduate salary projections are up for bachelor’s degrees in engineering, computer science, business and agriculture/natural resources.

Data shows that college remains one of the best paths to well-paying jobs. Bachelor’s degree holders earn on average 66 percent more than high school graduates. This may be one reason why over a third of U.S. adults (35 percent) consider getting a college degree part of the American Dream, according to Bankrate’s Home Affordability Survey. But college is expensive, and not all careers are equally profitable.

Careers that call for higher skill and education levels pay significantly more than jobs that do not. BLS data show those with a bachelor’s degree average 66 percent more earnings per week than those with just a high school diploma. Those with a professional degree, on the other hand, earn about 53 percent more than bachelor’s degree holders.

Median earnings by educational attainment

Average salary projections for the class of 2025

Hiring projections were up this year as of January 2025, according to NACE. More than half of surveyed U.S. employers (57.1 percent) expect to maintain the number of college graduate hires steady, while over a quarter (27 percent) will increase hires. Only a small percentage (15.9 percent) expect to reduce hires compared to previous years.

What’s more, bachelor’s degree earners in the Class of 2025 will have higher starting salaries depending on major, according to NACE data. Agriculture and natural resources majors will experience the highest salary jump, with a slight projected increase of 2.8%.

Humanities previously had the highest increase at 28.9% but it has now been dropped from the table. Engineering and computer science, as well as math and science are the top paid, despite modest growth or decreases. Social science and communications took the largest dips for earnings.

Median salary of college vs. high school graduate

College graduates, on average, out-earn high school graduates. As mentioned, college graduates make 66% more weekly than high school graduates. Education is important across the board, as high school graduates can earn more than $10,000 annually over non-graduates, according to the U.S. Career Institute.

Weekly, high school graduates earn a median amount of $930 compared to $1,543 for workers with a bachelor’s degree, according to the BLS. Those with a master’s degree earn a median weekly pay of $1,840, while those with a professional degree earn $2,363 weekly. Annually, high school graduates earn a median salary of $48,360 and bachelor’s degree graduates earn a median salary of $80,236.

Median salary by age, gender and race

Legislation like the Equal Pay Act aims to reduce systemic inequalities within the U.S. job market. Despite these endeavors, the racial and gender pay gaps persist. Both women and minorities — particularly Hispanic and Black graduates — earn less than their peers.

“We know that the gender pay gap and the racial pay gap — and intersections of those — are still a feature broadly of our labor market,” says Mary Gatta, Nace’s director of research and public policy. “It is important for students to really work hard on preparing for salary negotiations. Obviously, we have to continue to work on closing the pay gap across race and gender on the employer side as well and through public policy.”

The gaps exist even if you control for seasonal and part-time labor. The salary numbers below are for full-time, year-round workers.

Median salary by age

Salary typically increases with age and experience up to a point. Median salaries tend to rise until age 44, when they start to drop.

Median salary by gender

On average, female graduates earn less than their male counterparts. The difference is $14,976 (27 percent) for associate degree graduates, $22,152 (27.3 percent) for bachelor’s degree graduates and $29,016 (28.1 percent) for graduates with a master’s degree or higher.

Median salary by race and ethnicity

Racial salary disparities have also persisted in the U.S. economy. White and Asian workers earn significantly more than Black and Hispanic workers across all levels of education.

The gap is particularly large between Asian and Hispanic full-time workers with a master’s degree or higher. Asian workers earn a median income of $107,290, while Hispanic workers earn a median of just $62,290 — a 53 percent difference.

4 Ways to pay off college debt after graduation

With college affordability still an issue for millions of Americans, many turn to student loans when other aid falls short. In fact, 51 percent of college undergraduates leave college with student loan debt.

Bankrate’s Money and Mental Health Survey found money negatively impacts the mental health of close to half of U.S. adults (43 percent), causing issues like increased stress, depression, sleep loss and anxiety. If you borrowed money to pay for school, there are a few ways to manage your debt effectively to avoid it from negatively impacting your life and finances.

• Apply for income-driven repayment
  

  If you have federal student loans, applying for an income-driven repayment (IDR) plan is one way you can make your monthly bill more affordable. These plans base your payment amount on your household size and income. In some cases, payments can be as low as $0.

• Employer assistance programs
  

  Employers are allowed to offer tax-free benefits up to $5,250 a year in student loan repayment assistance to qualifying employees. Though not every company offers this, it’s worth asking your HR or benefits department whether yours does.

• State assistance programs
  

  Depending on your career and where you live, you may be eligible for repayment assistance from your state. Your state may forgive part of your balance or help you with a portion of your payments.

• Student loan refinancing
  

  Though you can refinance both federal and private student loans, this option is best suited for the latter. When you refinance federal student loans, they turn into private loans, so you lose access to IDR plans, administrative forbearance and federal forgiveness programs.

  Refinancing private student loans could lower your interest rate, monthly payments — or both — depending on your credit score and income, making your debt more manageable.

Bottom line

Despite degree-based hiring trends taking a dip, median college graduate earnings still outpace those of high school graduates. College graduates earn more than 50% of what high school graduates do.

The market still reflects age, race and gender disparities. If you need to finance the cost of education, look into employer and state assistance. You might also be able to refinance the loan.

Frequently asked questions

• What’s the difference between median and average salary?
  

  If you have all the salaries in your data lined up in order, the median is the salary that lands right in the middle. Exactly half of the salaries are over the median point and half are under.

  The average salary is what you get when you add all salaries and then divide by the total number of data points. Median data points tend to reflect trends better, as they cannot be as easily skewed by outlier numbers like averages.

• Does the average salary by age go up or down?
  

  Unfortunately, trends in salaries rise before a certain age and then start to trend down. According to the BLS, salaries tend to peak at ages 45 to 54, and then trend downward beginning at age 55.

• Does the average salary by education level vary by occupation?
  

  Yes, NACE data shows graduates with certain majors outearning those with other degrees. For instance, despite all having bachelor’s degrees, engineering students out-earn communications students by over $18,000 annually as part of 2025 projections.