Career outcomes brief
California State University-Los Angeles Career Outcomes & Earnings
How much do Cal State LA graduates earn?
California State University-Los Angeles reports median earnings of $59,756 four years after completion. Its lower and higher planning estimates are $44,151 and $79,675.
The lower and higher estimates reflect different mixes of program earnings. They are not observed salary percentiles, the pay of the lowest- and highest-paid quarters of graduates, or probabilities for an individual student.
- Lower estimate
- $44,151
- Median · reported
- $59,756
- Higher estimate
- $79,675
Earnings sources and definitions
The lower estimate lets you examine a plan with less income than the school-wide median. Compare it with costs and with the fields you are considering, while keeping the modeled estimates separate from reported earnings.
Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $59,756. That is at the 50th percentile nationally, and $5,854 below the $65,610 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).
Graduates earn about $14,737 more than expects for similar students. That places the gap at the 91st percentile.
The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $3,419. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $11,318. Azimuth places the university at the 60th percentile for return.
The range between the downside and upside scenarios spans from $44,151 to $79,675, reflecting the earnings variation across the university's program mix. The highest-earning programs account for much of this spread.
Nursing completers earn a median of $116,182 four years after completion, while Electrical Engineering graduates earn $96,014 and Civil Engineering graduates earn $94,760.
An estimated 28.4% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure derived from the institution's program mix rather than observed enrollment. Because four-year earnings figures capture only those working and not enrolled, this estimate indicates that a sizable portion of completers may be building additional human capital outside the earnings snapshot.
Earnings by field
Among California State University-Los Angeles programs with a reported four-year earnings value, the highest medians are: Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing ($116,182); Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering ($96,014); Civil Engineering ($94,760); Mechanical Engineering ($93,028); Computer Science ($87,525). These are earnings after completion for the covered cohort.
A program median describes the middle reported outcome in that group. It is not a starting-salary offer or a prediction for every graduate, and an earnings comparison does not by itself explain why fields differ.
Compare these results with the subjects you want to study and the program’s reported award count. Awards measure degree output, not the number of people in the earnings sample.
The highest-earning programs at California State University-Los Angeles are in engineering and nursing, and they are not the largest by degrees awarded. Nursing leads with median earnings of $116,182 four years after completion, from 158 degrees awarded.
Azimuth ranks it #26 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field. Civil Engineering follows, with 73 degrees awarded and median earnings of $94,760; its Azimuth national rank is #20.
The largest program, Business Administration and Management, awards 726 degrees a year and posts a more moderate median of $62,716. Azimuth ranks it #134 nationally.
Teacher Education is also large, with 391 degrees awarded and median earnings of $50,444, placing it #53 in its field.
California State University-Los Angeles has 29 nationally ranked bachelor's programs, with Azimuth rankings that range from Social Work to Civil Engineering. The largest programs are in business and the social sciences, but the strongest rankings and highest earnings are concentrated in health and engineering fields.
Social Work is the highest-ranked program nationally, at #11 in its field, with 227 degrees awarded and median earnings of $59,545 four years after completion. Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions follows at #12 nationally and #1 in California, from 46 degrees a year.
The highest-earning program is Nursing, at $116,182 four years out, with 158 degrees awarded. Electrical Engineering and Civil Engineering also clear $96,014 and $94,760, respectively.
The largest program, Business Administration and Management, awards 726 degrees and earns $62,716, which is well below the engineering and nursing figures.
Do Cal State LA graduates earn more than expected?
California State University-Los Angeles reports median earnings of $59,756 four years after completion. The reported value is $14,737 above Azimuth’s statistical expectation for the institution.
The difference compares the reported outcome with a model estimate. It does not compare matched students who attended different colleges, and it does not establish how much the institution caused earnings to change.
Read this measure alongside completion and individual program outcomes. It describes an institution-level result; it does not predict what a particular student will earn.
Read the original article: A value-added approach to college outcomes
- Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
- +$3,419
- Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
- +$11,318
- Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
- +$14,737
These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.
Further analysis
Earnings vary sharply by field. Earnings scenarios anchored on the university's program mix show a downside of $44,151, a typical outcome of $59,756, and an upside of $79,675.
The highest-earning program, Nursing, reaches $116,182, while among the largest programs with published earnings Kinesiology and Physical Education sits at $44,930.
At California State University-Los Angeles, the median earnings four years after completion sit at $59,756 for federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled. That is $5,854 below the $65,610 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).
Graduates earn about $14,737 more than the model expects for similar students. Earnings beyond expectations places the university at the 91st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.
Earnings scenarios estimated from the program mix show a typical figure of $59,756, with a downside scenario of $44,151 and an upside of $79,675. An estimated 28.4% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.
Data & methodology
Sources and reporting periods: methodology.
Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, 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.
Four-year earnings are measured after completion for the covered federally aided cohort of people working and not enrolled. Measures taken six, eight or ten years after entry use a different starting point and should not be treated as one graduating class followed over time.
Program award counts describe credentials awarded, not current enrollment, unique graduates or earnings-sample size. Reporting periods differ across measures; the shared field definitions do not establish the exact vintage of every school-level value.
College Scorecard data and documentation · Model methodology