10 college majors with the highest starting salaries

Going to college provides an opportunity to not only earn a degree, but also boost earning potential in the real world.

The median usual weekly earnings for a worker in the U.S. with a bachelor’s degree is $1,156 compared with $692 for someone who has only earned a high school diploma, according to 2016 data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Some degrees pay off more than others. According to PayScale data — which, for the first time, can be found on U.S. News profile pages for 1,000 schools — these are the 10 majors with the highest median starting salaries for alumni with 0-5 years of postgrad experience whose highest degree is a bachelor’s, along with the schools where graduates earn the most in those fields.

Engineer Showing Apprentice How to Use Drill In Factory — **10. Mechanical Engineering** **Median starting salary:** $64,394 **College with highest median alumni starting salary for this major:** United States Naval Academy (MD) **U.S. News Best Colleges rank:** 21 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges (Thinkstock)

9. Aerospace & Aeronautical Engineering Median starting salary: $66,771 College with highest median alumni starting salary for this major: Mississippi State University U.S. News Best Colleges rank: 171 (tie), National Universities (Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP)

Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP

Engineer setup testing machine — **8. Materials Engineering** **Median starting salary:** $66,967 **College with highest median alumni starting salary for this major:** Stanford University (CA) **U.S. News Best Colleges rank:** 5 (tie), National Universities (Thinkstock)

Internet connection. Confident professional female technician looking at the USB cables and checking them while working in the data center — **7. Systems Engineering** **Median starting salary:** $68,055 **College with highest median alumni starting salary for this major:** United States Naval Academy (MD) **U.S. News Best Colleges rank:** 21 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges (Thinkstock)

Young woman in uniform repairing something with screwdriver — **6. Electrical Engineering** **Median starting salary:** $68,147 **College with highest median alumni starting salary for this major:** Cornell University (NY) **U.S. News Best Colleges rank:** 14 (tie), National Universities (Thinkstock)

Man and woman using computer together — **5. Mathematics & Computer Science** **Median starting salary:** $68,893 **College with highest median alumni starting salary for this major:** University of Washington **U.S. News Best Colleges rank:** 56 (tie), National Universities (Thinkstock)

Close up on microchip catching with tweezers on circuit board. Selective focus on chip. — **4. Computer Engineering** **Median starting salary:** $69,537 **College with highest median alumni starting salary for this major:** Massachusetts Institute of Technology **U.S. News Best Colleges rank:** 5 (tie), National Universities (Thinkstock)

Ein laufendes Atomkraftwerk gegen den Abendhimmel fotografiert. — **3. Nuclear Engineering** **Median starting salary:** $69,885 **College with highest median alumni starting salary for this major:** University of Tennessee **U.S. News Best Colleges rank:** 103 (tie), National Universities (Thinkstock)

African scientist, medical worker, tech or graduate student works in modern biological laboratory — **2. Chemical Engineering** **Median starting salary:** $70,658 **College with highest median alumni starting salary for this major:** University of Houston **U.S. News Best Colleges rank:** 192 (tie), National Universities (Thinkstock)

1. Petroleum Engineering Median starting salary: $96,273 College with highest median alumni starting salary for this major: University of Wyoming U.S. News Best Colleges rank: 181 (tie), National Universities (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

AP Photo/Thibault Camus

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10 college majors with the highest starting salaries originally appeared on usnews.com