Best Schools for Area Studies
Area Studies graduates earn a median of $58,528 within four years of graduating, ranking #208 out of 283 tracked majors — 6% below the median across all fields. There are 117 colleges nationwide with tracked earnings for this major, producing 2,599 recent graduates.
Where you study matters: Cornell University graduates earn $96,976 while Florida International University graduates earn $23,742 — a $73,234 difference. Factors like location, employer networks, co-op programs, and curriculum focus drive this gap. Across all fields, though, which major you pick separates earnings more than which college does.
Early career salary growth is moderate: Area Studies graduates see an average 7% increase between year 1 and year 2 post-graduation, reflecting career advancement and skill development in the first years after college.
Public vs Private: Area Studies
Private schools produce $10,861 more in early earnings on average for Area Studies graduates. Factor in tuition difference to calculate which offers better ROI.
Area Studies by State
Also by state: Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon, Utah, Washington DC, Wisconsin
Top Area Studies Schools by Graduate Earnings
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY · Private
Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY · Private
Miami University-Oxford
Oxford, OH · Public
Bowdoin College
Brunswick, ME · Private
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, IN · Private
Fordham University
Bronx, NY · Private
University of Missouri-Columbia
Columbia, MO · Public
Emory University
Atlanta, GA · Private
Trinity College
Hartford, CT · Private
University of California-Berkeley
Berkeley, CA · Public
Tufts University
Medford, MA · Private
William & Mary
Williamsburg, VA · Public
Ramapo College of New Jersey
Mahwah, NJ · Public
Amherst College
Amherst, MA · Private
Brigham Young University
Provo, UT · Private
Yale University
New Haven, CT · Private
Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL · Public
Barnard College
New York, NY · Private
University of Virginia-Main Campus
Charlottesville, VA · Public
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC · Public
Nevada State University
Henderson, NV · Public
Dartmouth College
Hanover, NH · Private
Colby College
Waterville, ME · Private
Dickinson College
Carlisle, PA · Private
New York University
New York, NY · Private
Iowa State University
Ames, IA · Public
University of Michigan-Dearborn
Dearborn, MI · Public
Connecticut College
New London, CT · Private
Hobart William Smith Colleges
Geneva, NY · Private
Brown University
Providence, RI · Private
University of Maryland-College Park
College Park, MD · Public
University of California-Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, CA · Public
Rutgers University-New Brunswick
New Brunswick, NJ · Public
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI · Public
University of Puget Sound
Tacoma, WA · Private
The University of Texas at Austin
Austin, TX · Public
University of Washington-Seattle Campus
Seattle, WA · Public
University of Washington-Bothell Campus
Bothell, WA · Public
University of Washington-Tacoma Campus
Tacoma, WA · Public
Middlebury College
Middlebury, VT · Private
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Madison, WI · Public
Oberlin College
Oberlin, OH · Private
Brandeis University
Waltham, MA · Private
University of Oregon
Eugene, OR · Public
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Champaign, IL · Public
Utah State University
Logan, UT · Public
California State University-Northridge
Northridge, CA · Public
University of California-Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA · Public
Smith College
Northampton, MA · Private
California State University-Fullerton
Fullerton, CA · Public
Showing top 50 of 117 schools. View all or filter by state above.
Majors with Similar Earnings
Frequently Asked Questions
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Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Earnings are median 2 years after graduation for bachelor's degree holders, from the field-of-study file last updated June 2026. Institution-level figures elsewhere on the site come from the June 2026 release — Scorecard publishes the two separately.
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