Design and Applied Arts at Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus

University Park, PA · Bachelor's Degree · about 34 graduates a year

$43,324
Median pay 1 year after graduating
$58,105
Median pay 4 years after graduating
$51,490
National median for this major (4 yrs)
#97 of 299
Rank by pay
#94 of 299
Rank, wage-adjusted
$25,625
Median federal debt

Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus graduates in design and applied arts earn 13% more than the national median for the same major four years after graduating. Their median federal debt equals about 44% of one year’s pay at that point.

How Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus Compares for Design and Applied Arts

All 299 colleges reporting design and applied arts 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
1Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA$138,588$140,945#1$66,274
2Lawrence Technological University Southfield, MI$99,444$104,852#2—
3Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus Atlanta, GA$95,697$99,066#3$52,694
4University of Washington-Seattle Campus Seattle, WA$89,193$82,038#6$63,449
5University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA$89,022$81,004#7$64,846
6Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY$87,358$83,147#5$36,191
7Northeastern University Boston, MA$87,336$76,908#10$49,727
8University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN$83,414$89,488#4$46,825
9Chapman University Orange, CA$78,121$71,085#21$46,519
10Art Center College of Design Pasadena, CA$76,093$69,240#26$47,053
…
94Western Carolina University Cullowhee, NC$58,467$62,743#56$32,842
95Belmont University Nashville, TN$58,314$63,702#49$28,702
96Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Altoona Altoona, PA$58,105$59,093#93$43,324
97Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus University Park, PA$58,105$59,093#94$43,324
98LIM College New York, NY$58,061$55,262#126$31,885
99Kennesaw State University Kennesaw, GA$57,755$59,788#88$25,839
100University of North Texas Denton, TX$57,753$58,718#97$33,867

Other Majors at Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus by Graduate Pay

Major4 yrs after1 yr afterRank in major
Computer and Information Sciences$120,729$84,050#43 of 459
Petroleum Engineering$113,669$85,795#7 of 19
Computer Engineering$112,269$85,446#69 of 189
Industrial Engineering$104,758$78,975#21 of 94
Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services$104,205$67,306#2 of 37
Chemical Engineering$103,728$82,218#33 of 158
Engineering$102,134$73,153#6 of 19
Computer Science$101,854$72,884#157 of 349
Biomedical/Medical Engineering$100,416$76,531#28 of 118
Engineering Science$100,176$79,909#3 of 9
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering$99,159$73,100#22 of 59
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management$98,637$73,941#20 of 99
Finance and Financial Management Services$96,714$68,552#75 of 452
Management Information Systems and Services$95,935$66,169#29 of 166
Architectural Engineering$94,483$80,070#2 of 16
Nuclear Engineering$94,365$78,218#7 of 12
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering$93,277$74,958#215 of 258
Materials Sciences$92,864$72,216—
Information Science/Studies$91,671$66,209#35 of 148
Mining and Mineral Engineering$91,411—#6 of 7
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing$91,032$77,955#329 of 966
Accounting and Related Services$88,192$63,425#137 of 796
Engineering$88,063$68,331#30 of 57
Mechanical Engineering$87,997$69,772#241 of 318
Polymer/Plastics Engineering$87,636$68,438#6 of 6
Agricultural Engineering$87,564$62,382#9 of 26
Statistics$86,636$68,254#26 of 50
Food Science and Technology$83,112$59,722#3 of 29
Electromechanical Technologies/Technicians$81,835$65,043#19 of 23
Physics$81,763$43,461#45 of 107

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus design and applied arts graduates make?

Graduates earn a median $43,324 one year after graduating and $58,105 four years after graduating. Figures are from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.

How does Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus rank for design and applied arts?

Among 299 colleges reporting earnings for design and applied arts graduates, Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus ranks #97 by median pay four years after graduation, and #94 after adjusting for state wage levels.

Is design and applied arts at Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus worth it?

Its graduates earn 13% more than the national median for design and applied arts ($51,490), and the median federal debt at graduation is $25,625.

← All data for Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus · 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.