CSUMB Career Outcomes: $62K Median Earnings (2026)

How much do CSUMB graduates earn?

The reported median is $62,324 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $57,301 as its benchmark; the difference is $5,023 per year.

Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $62,324, at the 58th percentile nationally. That is $5,023 above the $57,301 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Graduates earn about $14,732 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 $5,167. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $9,565.

Azimuth places the university at the 68th percentile for return among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Earnings at California State University-Monterey Bay vary substantially by field. The downside earnings scenario is $46,117 four years after completion, whereas the upside scenario is $90,775; these scenarios describe possibilities based on the program mix rather than observed graduate groups.

Separate program-level medians show a wider set of outcomes: four years after completion, Nursing has median earnings of $134,489, Computer Science has $101,787, and Business Administration and Management has $72,558. Those figures are distinct measures from the earnings scenarios, so they are not boundaries for them.

Graduate study makes the four-year earnings figure a partial view of graduates’ paths. An estimated 29.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix rather than observed enrollment.

The earnings measure covers completers who are working and not enrolled, rather than those continuing their education.

How could earnings differ from the median?

Earnings four years after completion

Planning rangeReported median

Lower estimate: $46,117
Median · reported: $62,324
Higher estimate: $90,775

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 explores the risk hidden by medians, using older ten-year entrant data. Read about the move to four-year earnings.

Do CSUMB 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.

CSUMB graduates’ reported earnings are $14,732 above that expectation, the 91st 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 CSUMB caused a student to earn. Read how expected earnings are estimated.

Which fields at CSUMB report the highest earnings?

Program choice separates the higher- and moderate-earning ranked fields at California State University-Monterey Bay. Business Administration and Management had median earnings of $72,558 four years after completion and 265 degrees awarded; Azimuth ranks it #90 among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Liberal Arts and General Studies had $59,017 and 242 degrees awarded, with an Azimuth rank of #25 nationally. Psychology recorded $54,074 on 231 degrees awarded and ranks #94 nationally through Azimuth.

Kinesiology and Physical Education posted $47,736 with 172 degrees awarded; Azimuth ranks it #138 nationally. The first field has the higher earnings figure, while the others form a more moderate range.

Program choices pair nationally ranked fields with earnings that differ widely across the largest offerings. California State University-Monterey Bay has 16 ranked programs and published earnings data for 20 programs.

Azimuth places Human Services at #4 nationally within its field among nonprofit four-year institutions. It awarded 96 degrees, with median earnings of $56,719 four years after completion.

Nursing stands at #7 nationally within its field, awarded 52 degrees, and shows median earnings of $134,489 four years after completion. Azimuth ranks Social Sciences #12 nationally within its field.

89 degrees were awarded, and median earnings were $57,200 four years after completion.

Further analysis

The program mix points to markedly different earnings scenarios by field: the downside is $46,117, the typical scenario is $62,324, and the upside is $90,775. Nursing has median earnings of $134,489 four years after completion, whereas Kinesiology and Physical Education has $47,736. The range reflects wide variation by field.

California State University-Monterey Bay shows an above-expected early-career earnings picture for its federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled. Median earnings are $62,324 four years after completion, and Azimuth places that measure in the 58th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The earnings cohort contains 2,237 completers. Graduates earn about $14,732 more than the model expects for similar students.

This is earnings beyond expectations, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students. The typical earnings scenario matches the overall median, with a downside scenario of $46,117 and an upside scenario of $90,775.

An estimated 29.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix. Above-expected earnings sit alongside scenarios that vary by program.

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.