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Career outcomes brief

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# Appalachian State University Career Outcomes & Earnings

Updated October 1, 2026

[Overview](/school/appalachian-state-university/)[Cost & aid](/school/appalachian-state-university/cost/)Outcomes[Admissions](/school/appalachian-state-university/admissions/)[Majors](/school/appalachian-state-university/majors/)[Similar schools](/school/appalachian-state-university/similar/)

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## How much do Appalachian State University graduates earn?

The reported median is $54,010 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $65,610 as its benchmark; the difference is \-$11,600 per year.

Azimuth places the return pillar at the 28th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $54,010 four years after completion, at the 29th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The peer median is $65,610 for comparable institutions (same type and size), placing the university $11,600 below that mark. Those graduates earn about $9,179 less than the model expects for similar students.

That puts the gap at the 21st percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $8,727.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $17,906. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $1,244.

Field selection coincides with a broad range in modeled earnings at the university. The downside earnings scenario is $45,024 four years after completion, and the upside scenario is $76,611; both are estimated from the program mix rather than observed groups.

At the higher end, Computer Science reaches $97,670, Management Information Systems and Services reaches $87,041, and Accounting reaches $85,580, each four years after completion. Those program medians help explain why the earnings scenarios are so far apart.

Four-year earnings omit completers who remain enrolled in graduate study. An estimated 27.7% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix rather than observed enrollment.

The reported median therefore describes working completers who are not enrolled, rather than every graduate.

**Median earnings · four years after completion**
$54,010

**Rank for difference from expectations**
21st percentile

Four-year median earnings against two benchmarks

**Appalachian State University reported median**
$54,010

**Peer schools comparable schools · $11,600 above Appalachian State University**
$65,610

**Model expectation what similar students would be expected to earn · $9,179 above Appalachian State University**
$63,189

School and program earnings use pooled 2017–18 and 2018–19 completion cohorts, measured in 2022 and 2023 and expressed in 2024 dollars. [How the model works](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/).

## How could earnings differ from the median?

The planning scenarios range from $45,024 to $76,611, around the reported median of $54,010. Compare the lower scenario with [Appalachian State University borrowing and monthly payments](/school/appalachian-state-university/cost/) to see how a smaller income could change your plan.

Modeled from the school’s program mix; not salary percentiles or a forecast for one graduate.

Earnings four years after completion

Planning rangeReported median

**Lower estimate**
$45,024

**Median · reported**
$54,010

**Higher estimate**
$76,611

Downside shows a lower-earning scenario based on the college’s mix of programs; upside shows a higher-earning scenario. Typical is the school’s reported median four years after completion. These are planning scenarios, not a forecast of your salary or percentiles of individual graduates.

[Why the downside matters](/analysis/median-roi-hides-a-harsh-reality/) explores the risk hidden by medians, using older ten-year entrant data. [Read about the move to four-year earnings](/analysis/college-scorecard-2026-4-year-vs-10-year-earnings-2-2/).

## Do Appalachian State University graduates earn more than expected?

Azimuth models what we would expect graduates to earn based on who the college enrolls, how selective it is and its local economy. The difference between that expectation and reported earnings is what Azimuth calls [value added](/methodology/#value-added).

Appalachian State University graduates’ reported earnings are $9,179 below that expectation, the 21st percentile for this measure. Unlike a peer comparison, it adjusts for who enrolls.

The breakdown separates the contribution attributed to observed factors from the remaining difference. Neither component establishes how much attending Appalachian State University caused a student to earn. [Read how expected earnings are estimated](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/).

What explains value-added earnings?

**Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.**
+$8,727

**Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.**
\-$17,906

**Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.**
\-$9,179

These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

## Which fields at Appalachian State University report the highest earnings?

At Appalachian State University, computing fields occupy the higher-earning end of the program picture four years after completion. Computer Science: $97,670 in median earnings, 67 degrees awarded, and an [Azimuth rank](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/) of #130 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field.

Management Information Systems and Services recorded $87,041, with 88 degrees awarded and an Azimuth rank of #31 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field. At a more moderate earnings level, Psychology posted $47,720 four years after completion across 309 degrees awarded; Azimuth ranks it #219 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field.

The contrast between computing and this large program shows how much the earnings picture differs by field.

Appalachian State University has 45 nationally ranked bachelor's programs, and the strongest of them sit in fields that are not the largest. Insurance is the highest-ranked, at #9 in its field and #1 in North Carolina, with 40 degrees awarded and median earnings of $82,306 four years after completion.

Arts, Entertainment, and Media Management ranks #10 nationally and #1 in North Carolina in its field. Its completers earn $44,297 — a reminder that a strong rank does not always coincide with the highest pay.

The largest programs tell a different story. Psychology awards 309 degrees a year, the most of any single field, and its completers earn $47,720.

Business Administration and Management and Marketing are also among the largest, and both pay more: $64,932 and $69,439, respectively. The highest-earning program overall is Computer Science, at $97,670, though it awards only 67 degrees a year.

The spread between the largest program's earnings and the highest earner's is wide, and a student's choice of field matters more for pay than the university's overall median would suggest.

Highest reported four-year program earnings

**Computer Science**
$97,670

**Management Information Systems and Services**
$87,041

**Accounting and Related Services**
$85,580

**Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods**
$83,033

**Physics**
$82,399

**Insurance**
$82,306

**Construction Management**
$80,257

**Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing**
$78,943

[Explore Appalachian State University program cohorts and field ranks](/school/appalachian-state-university/majors/#largest-cohorts) for more context.

## Further analysis

The earnings scenarios show how earnings vary across the program mix. The downside earnings scenario is $45,024, the typical scenario is $54,010, and the upside scenario is $76,611.

Computer Science reaches $97,670 four years after completion; among the largest programs, Teacher Education is at $46,057. These are earnings scenarios, not observed groups.

Graduate earnings sit low in the national distribution, even as the university’s mobility record is strong. At Appalachian State University, federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled had median earnings of $54,010 four years after completion.

Azimuth places those earnings in the 29th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions; the earnings cohort included 4,507 completers. Graduates earn about $9,179 less than the model expects for similar students.

Earnings scenarios from the program mix put typical earnings at $54,010, with a downside scenario of $45,024 and an upside scenario of $76,611. An estimated 27.7% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix.

The low earnings percentile and below-expected result point in the same direction.

## Data & methodology

Sources and reporting periods: [methodology](/methodology/).

Analysis and methodology by [Daniel Rogers](/about/#founder), founder of College Azimuth.

Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.

Figure notes link to sources and limitations. [About College Azimuth](/about/).