These 20 college majors lead to lowest salaries after graduation in the US.

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Mar 22
3 min read

By Minh Nga March 17, 2026 | 07:31 pm GMT+7

A new analysis finds that graduates in liberal arts and education fields earn the lowest salaries within five years of finishing college, while engineering majors report much higher early-career pay.

According to a February analysis by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York using the latest available 2024 data from the United States Census Bureau, those who studied theology, performing arts, social services, and education recorded some of the lowest median earnings shortly after graduating.

Graduates in these fields typically earn $45,000 a year or less, below the individual median income in the United States of $45,140, according to Census Bureau figures.

One reason is that many education professionals work for state and local governments, where pay growth often lags behind the private sector.

Although teaching positions can offer job security, pensions, and long summer breaks, a 2025 study by the Economic Policy Institute shows that teachers generally earn less than other college graduates with similar qualifications and experience.

Similarly, many liberal arts and social service graduates work in nonprofits, public institutions, or service-oriented roles—sectors that have historically paid less than technical fields such as engineering or computer science, where demand is higher, according to CNBC.

Engineering graduates, by contrast, tend to earn significantly more. Most report median salaries of at least $75,000 within five years of finishing college, and their incomes typically exceed $100,000 between the ages of 35 and 45.

Chemical engineering graduates earn the highest median mid-career salary, reaching about $135,000 annually.

People walk through the campus of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) in Los Angeles, U.S., in 2025. Photo by Reuters

Lowest-paying majors for workers aged 22-27

The report identified the following 20 majors as having the lowest median annual earnings five years after graduation:

1. Pharmacy – $40,000

2. Theology and religion – $41,600

3. Social services – $43,000

4. Performing arts – $44,000

5. General education—$45,000

6. Early childhood education – $45,000

7. Elementary education – $45,000

8. Liberal arts – $45,000

9. Biology – $45,000

10. Leisure and hospitality – $45,000

11. Psychology – $45,000

12. Anthropology – $45,000

13. Art history – $45,000

14. Fine arts – $45,000

15. General Education—$45,000

16. Leisure and Hospitality—$45,000

17. Liberal Arts—$45,000

18. Psychology—$45,000

19. General Social Sciences—$45,200

20. Secondary Education—$45,300

However, the figures cover only workers whose highest qualification is a bachelor’s degree. As a result, the data does not include licensed pharmacists, who earn a median salary of $137,480 a year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Practicing as a pharmacist requires a Doctor of Pharmacy degree and state licensing, the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy notes.

Although pharmacy ranks lowest in the early-career list, earnings rise significantly over time. By mid-career, between the ages of 35 and 45, pharmacy graduates report a median income of $85,000, more than double their earnings in their early twenties. Because the data groups workers by college major rather than specific job titles, not every pharmacy graduate is employed as a licensed pharmacist.

Education-related majors, however, remain among the lowest-paying even later in workers' careers.

Lowest-paying majors for workers aged 35-45

Among mid-career workers, the following majors reported the lowest median salaries, all under $75,000:

1. Early childhood education – $52,000

2. Elementary education – $55,000

3. General education – $56,000

4. Special education – $56,000

5. Social services—$60,000

6. Miscellaneous education—$60,000

7. Secondary education – $62,000

8. Anthropology – $65,000

9. Family and consumer sciences – $65,000