Graduates of California State University-Fresno earn median earnings of $59,992 four years after enrollment, placing California State University-Fresno in the 45.3 percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. That figure sits below the $65,228 median at comparable institutions (same control and size band). Graduates earn about $15,241 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing the institution in the 92.6 percentile for earnings beyond expectations among nonprofit four-year institutions. Those figures represent lifetime returns relative to CA's no-degree-equivalent earnings baseline of $34,672, the state median earnings of working adults without a bachelor's degree. While institution-level earnings track CA's regional labor market, specific programs deliver materially stronger outcomes. Azimuth ranks Nursing #43 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions per the program-ranking methodology, with graduates earning median earnings of $111,278 — 1.25x the national benchmark for the field. Business Administration is the largest program with 655 graduates earning median earnings of $64,133, and Azimuth ranks it #130 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions. The Psychology, General program graduates 552 students with median earnings of $51,526, while The General Studies program graduates 529 students earning $58,436. The degree mix leans toward Social Sciences, which accounts for 13% of graduates, followed by Business at 13% and Engineering at 4% — a distribution that shapes the institution's overall earnings profile and helps explain why program-level variation matters when evaluating California State University-Fresno.
Graduates of California State University-Fresno earn median earnings of $59,992 four years after enrollment, placing California State University-Fresno in the 45.3 percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. That figure sits below the $65,228 median at comparable institutions (same control and size band). Graduates earn about $15,241 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing the institution in the 92.6 percentile for earnings beyond expectations among nonprofit four-year institutions. Those figures represent lifetime returns relative to CA's no-degree-equivalent earnings baseline of $34,672, the state median earnings of working adults without a bachelor's degree. While institution-level earnings track CA's regional labor market, specific programs deliver materially stronger outcomes. Azimuth ranks Nursing #43 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions per the program-ranking methodology, with graduates earning median earnings of $111,278 — 1.25x the national benchmark for the field. Business Administration is the largest program with 655 graduates earning median earnings of $64,133, and Azimuth ranks it #130 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions. The Psychology, General program graduates 552 students with median earnings of $51,526, while The General Studies program graduates 529 students earning $58,436. The degree mix leans toward Social Sciences, which accounts for 13% of graduates, followed by Business at 13% and Engineering at 4% — a distribution that shapes the institution's overall earnings profile and helps explain why program-level variation matters when evaluating California State University-Fresno.
Latest FE earnings field: 10-year
Lower quartile, 10-year field
Upper quartile, 10-year field
Graduates of California State University-Fresno earn median earnings of $59,992 four years after enrollment, placing California State University-Fresno in the 45.3 percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. That figure sits below the $65,228 median at comparable institutions (same control and size band). Graduates earn about $15,241 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing the institution in the 92.6 percentile for earnings beyond expectations among nonprofit four-year institutions. Those figures represent lifetime returns relative to CA's no-degree-equivalent earnings baseline of $34,672, the state median earnings of working adults without a bachelor's degree. While institution-level earnings track CA's regional labor market, specific programs deliver materially stronger outcomes. Azimuth ranks Nursing #43 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions per the program-ranking methodology, with graduates earning median earnings of $111,278 — 1.25x the national benchmark for the field. Business Administration is the largest program with 655 graduates earning median earnings of $64,133, and Azimuth ranks it #130 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions. The Psychology, General program graduates 552 students with median earnings of $51,526, while The General Studies program graduates 529 students earning $58,436. The degree mix leans toward Social Sciences, which accounts for 13% of graduates, followed by Business at 13% and Engineering at 4% — a distribution that shapes the institution's overall earnings profile and helps explain why program-level variation matters when evaluating California State University-Fresno.
How graduate earnings grow across the currently available FE horizons.
Financial justification for the investment.
Graduates of California State University-Fresno earn median earnings of $59,992 four years after enrollment, placing California State University-Fresno in the 45.3 percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. That figure sits below the $65,228 median at comparable institutions (same control and size band). Graduates earn about $15,241 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing the institution in the 92.6 percentile for earnings beyond expectations among nonprofit four-year institutions. Those figures represent lifetime returns relative to CA's no-degree-equivalent earnings baseline of $34,672, the state median earnings of working adults without a bachelor's degree. While institution-level earnings track CA's regional labor market, specific programs deliver materially stronger outcomes. Azimuth ranks Nursing #43 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions per the program-ranking methodology, with graduates earning median earnings of $111,278 — 1.25x the national benchmark for the field. Business Administration is the largest program with 655 graduates earning median earnings of $64,133, and Azimuth ranks it #130 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions. The Psychology, General program graduates 552 students with median earnings of $51,526, while The General Studies program graduates 529 students earning $58,436. The degree mix leans toward Social Sciences, which accounts for 13% of graduates, followed by Business at 13% and Engineering at 4% — a distribution that shapes the institution's overall earnings profile and helps explain why program-level variation matters when evaluating California State University-Fresno.
Program mix and student pathways explain much of the earnings story.
California State University-Fresno's program mix is anchored in Social Sciences, health professions, and applied business fields — a portfolio shaped by the university's role as the Central Valley's primary public research institution. Business Administration is the largest program with 655 graduates, followed by Psychology, General (552 graduates), General Studies (529 graduates), Criminology (399 graduates), and Kinesiology (231 graduates). Across 53 programs serving roughly 5,180 students annually, 37 meet Azimuth's ranking threshold. The degree output balances Social Sciences (13%), Business (13%), and Engineering (4%), reflecting a broad applied-professional orientation. The strongest earnings come from health and technical fields. Nursing leads with median earnings of $111,278 four years after enrollment from a cohort of 177 graduates, and Azimuth ranks the program #43 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General follows at $76,268 with 149 graduates, and Azimuth ranks it #7 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. The Business Administration program graduates 655 students with median earnings of $64,133, and Azimuth ranks the program #130 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. These programs represent the clearest high-return pathways at California State University-Fresno, combining strong early-career pay with direct workforce entry. The largest programs — Business Administration and Psychology, General — produce median earnings of $64,133 and $51,526 respectively, more moderate figures that reflect the mix of social-science and liberal-arts pathways where some graduates continue to graduate or professional school and four-year earnings undercount lifetime trajectory. General Studies, with median earnings of $58,436, represents a high-mobility direct-to-workforce pathway where early pay more closely tracks labor-market outcomes. The supply-demand map for college graduates provides additional context for how California State University-Fresno's strongest program families align with regional and national hiring demand, particularly in health professions and applied business — sectors with sustained workforce need across California's Central Valley. ```
See which programs drive the strongest earnings and career trajectories
