Engineering grads receive top salary offers; CU-Boulder stud
It was a tossup between art and engineering when Scott Byers was weighing disciplines and choosing a master's program.
Earning potential tipped him toward engineering.
A new report from the National Association of Colleges and Employers shows that engineering graduates command the highest starting salary offers. In fact, engineers claimed nine out of the top 10 slots, led by petroleum engineering students who enjoy an average starting offer of $77,278.
The only non-engineering major on the list was computer science, which had the fourth-highest offer at $60,473. At the University of Colorado, the computer science department is housed in the College of Engineering and Applied Science.
Byers, a master's student in CU's engineering college, said he's interested in tissue engineering. He said he's not surprised that engineering graduates are rewarded with the top-paying jobs.
"They are the hardest degrees to get," said Byers, who on Monday morning said he had stayed up all night long studying for a biochemistry course.
Last week, at CU's Career Fair, 117 of the 156 companies that set up booths were at least partly looking for engineering majors, said Lisa Severy, director of Career Services. Forty-seven companies were exclusively recruiting engineering majors.