Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies at California State University-Los Angeles

Los Angeles, CA · Bachelor's Degree

$28,725
Median pay 1 year after graduating
$51,414
Median pay 4 years after graduating
$48,471
National median for this major (4 yrs)
#52 of 137
Rank by pay
#73 of 137
Rank, wage-adjusted
$12,500
Median federal debt

California State University-Los Angeles graduates in rhetoric and composition/writing studies earn 6% more than the national median for the same major four years after graduating. Their median federal debt equals about 24% of one year’s pay at that point.

How California State University-Los Angeles Compares for Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies

All 137 colleges reporting rhetoric and composition/writing studies earnings at this degree level, ranked by median pay four years after graduation. “Wage-adjusted” divides pay by the square root of the state’s wage index so colleges in low-wage states aren’t penalized for local pay.

#College4 yrs afterWage-adjustedAdj. rank1 yr after
1University of Richmond University Of Richmond, VA$81,253$73,988#2—
2University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT$75,686$71,733#5$47,950
3Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA$71,205$72,416#4—
4Iowa State University Ames, IA$69,673$73,287#3—
5University of California-Berkeley Berkeley, CA$69,373$63,125#17$44,553
6Hobart William Smith Colleges Geneva, NY$68,522$65,219#9—
7The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX$68,314$69,455#7$38,713
8Saint Johns University Collegeville, MN$67,607$64,579#12—
9Clemson University Clemson, SC$67,102$74,406#1$43,505
10Wabash College Crawfordsville, IN$65,605$70,382#6$50,446
…
49University of Rhode Island Kingston, RI$52,625$51,830#57$43,267
50DePauw University Greencastle, IN$51,983$55,768#36$31,640
51Emerson College Boston, MA$51,742$45,564#79$33,441
52California State University-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA$51,414$46,783#73$28,725
53Ithaca College Ithaca, NY$51,001$48,542#65$26,443
54Saginaw Valley State University University Center, MI$50,875$53,642#50$23,298
55Weber State University Ogden, UT$50,847$48,191#68$36,205

Other Majors at California State University-Los Angeles by Graduate Pay

Major4 yrs after1 yr afterRank in major
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing$116,182$98,811#39 of 966
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering$96,014$63,981#167 of 258
Civil Engineering$94,760$73,178#23 of 233
Mechanical Engineering$93,028$55,405#127 of 318
Computer Science$87,525$44,530#264 of 349
Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians$86,970$45,287#16 of 51
Mathematics$70,677$37,845#152 of 309
Air Transportation$70,508$46,267#47 of 52
Computer and Information Sciences$69,022$45,355#387 of 459
Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology$67,441$50,428#48 of 110
Microbiological Sciences and Immunology$65,366$39,266#27 of 49
Business Administration, Management and Operations$62,716$42,062#681 of 1176
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities$59,904$30,824#97 of 476
Social Work$59,545$37,477#51 of 420
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions$57,695$32,805#36 of 85
Public Health$56,466$40,750#114 of 215
Political Science and Government$56,063$29,818#416 of 565
Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies$55,970$27,058#31 of 103
History$55,413$26,862#123 of 459
Economics$54,998$32,877#362 of 368
Criminal Justice and Corrections$54,695$32,974#328 of 660
Biology$53,908$33,304#562 of 841
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services$53,857$28,702#170 of 215
Philosophy$53,127—#53 of 86
Food Science and Technology—$52,806—
Nutrition Sciences$52,797$31,096#49 of 53
English Language and Literature$52,259$23,858#190 of 576
Chemistry$51,747$44,944#201 of 209
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods$50,444$31,366#219 of 680
Sociology$50,249$34,092#283 of 462

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do California State University-Los Angeles rhetoric and composition/writing studies graduates make?

Graduates earn a median $28,725 one year after graduating and $51,414 four years after graduating. Figures are from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.

How does California State University-Los Angeles rank for rhetoric and composition/writing studies?

Among 137 colleges reporting earnings for rhetoric and composition/writing studies graduates, California State University-Los Angeles ranks #52 by median pay four years after graduation, and #73 after adjusting for state wage levels.

Is rhetoric and composition/writing studies at California State University-Los Angeles worth it?

Its graduates earn 6% more than the national median for rhetoric and composition/writing studies ($48,471), and the median federal debt at graduation is $12,500.

← All data for California State University-Los Angeles · Methodology

Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study data. Earnings are medians for graduates who received federal aid and were working and not enrolled; programs with few graduates are not reported. Wage adjustment uses Census ACS state median household income.