Programs & majors brief
Columbia University in the City of New York Majors & Programs
Which majors earn the most at Columbia?
55 of 55 programs shown
Each bar is a field’s median. Program size counts degrees awarded, not unique people or the earnings sample.
Compare all matching programs
| Program | Degrees awarded | 4-yr earnings | Field rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Computer Engineering | 22 | $194,365 | — |
| Computer Science | 357 | $188,265 | #14 |
| Operations Research | 73 | $167,572 | — |
| Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering | 24 | $143,332 | — |
| Economics | 327 | $137,710 | #12 |
| Mathematics | 63 | $117,252 | — |
| Mechanical Engineering | 61 | $111,491 | #10 |
| Civil Engineering small degree count | 18 | $108,246 | — |
| Sociology | 50 | $101,536 | #1 |
| Political Science and Government | 225 | $100,245 | #4 |
| History | 111 | $98,079 | #5 |
| Area Studies | 59 | $96,884 | #1 |
| Research and Experimental Psychology | 163 | $86,946 | #2 |
| Sustainability Studies | 44 | $85,545 | #1 |
| Anthropology small degree count | 16 | $83,493 | — |
| Neurobiology and Neurosciences | 81 | $70,244 | #14 |
| Social Sciences, Other | 38 | $65,085 | #6 |
| English Language and Literature, General | 82 | $59,396 | #37 |
| Philosophy | 52 | $56,885 | #24 |
| Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies | 39 | $55,472 | #20 |
| Biology, General | 65 | $53,698 | #273 |
| Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies | 50 | $47,702 | — |
| Visual and Performing Arts, Other | 74 | $46,535 | #3 |
| Natural Resources Conservation and Research small degree count | 9 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Architecture small degree count | 14 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Information Science/Studies small degree count | 10 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Biomedical/Medical Engineering | 45 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Chemical Engineering | 21 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering small degree count | 19 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Engineering Physics small degree count | 16 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Industrial Engineering small degree count | 6 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and Services | 34 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics | 27 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Middle/Near Eastern and Semitic Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics small degree count | 16 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Slavic, Baltic and Albanian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics small degree count | 12 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Classics and Classical Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics small degree count | 10 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Germanic Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics small degree count | 5 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology small degree count | 18 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology small degree count | 10 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Applied Mathematics | 52 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Statistics | 37 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Mathematics and Computer Science small degree count | 13 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Data Science small degree count | 8 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Religion/Religious Studies small degree count | 10 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Philosophy and Religious Studies, Other small degree count | 10 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences | 23 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Astronomy and Astrophysics small degree count | 17 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Physics small degree count | 17 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Chemistry small degree count | 10 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Materials Sciences small degree count | 5 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Urban Studies/Affairs small degree count | 14 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Fine and Studio Arts | 34 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Music small degree count | 17 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft small degree count | 8 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Dance small degree count | 6 | Too few graduates to report | — |
Program data and definitions · How to evaluate program rankings
What are the largest programs at Columbia?
Counts describe degrees awarded in the reporting period, not current enrollment. Program data and definitions
How do Columbia majors rank nationally?
National program rankings
- Area Studies#1
- Sustainability Studies#1
- Sociology#1
- Research and Experimental Psychology#2
- Visual and Performing Arts, Other#3
- Political Science and Government#4
- History#5
- Social Sciences, Other#6
- Mechanical Engineering#10
- Economics#12
- Computer Science#14
- Neurobiology and Neurosciences#14
- Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies#20
- Philosophy#24
- English Language and Literature, General#37
Programs ranked in the national top 50, supplemented by the largest ranked programs when needed to show ten. Fewer appear when fewer ranks are reported. Each rank compares bachelor’s programs in the same field; field sizes differ.
Further analysis
The return on a degree from Columbia University in the City of New York varies sharply by field, and Azimuth's program rankings are built to surface that. They evaluate four-year earnings among federally aided completers, median debt, and cohort size rather than reputation.
The university has 23 programs with published earnings data, and 16 carry an Azimuth national rank. The degree mix is led by Social Sciences, which accounts for 25.3% of bachelor's degrees awarded, followed by Computer & Information Sciences at 13.9% and Engineering at 11.5%.
The largest single program is Computer Science, at 357 degrees awarded in a year, and Azimuth ranks it #14 nationally within its field. Graduates from that program earn a median of $188,265 four years after completion.
The highest-earning program is a much smaller one: Computer Engineering, with 22 degrees awarded, reports a median of $194,365. Area Studies holds the university's strongest national rank at #1, with 59 degrees awarded and median earnings of $96,884.
Award counts reflect degrees conferred in one academic year, and program earnings cover federally aided completers.
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.