Career outcomes brief

Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania Career Outcomes & Earnings

Updated September 30, 2026

How much do Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania graduates earn?

The reported median is $58,676 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $57,301 as its benchmark; the difference is $1,375 per year.

The return picture is mixed: earnings sit above comparable institutions, but graduates fall short of expectation for similar students. Azimuth places Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania in the 41st percentile for return among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $5,024 less than the model expects for similar students, placing earnings beyond expectations in the 36th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $5,578.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $10,602. Four years after completion, median earnings are $58,676, in the 46th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

That is $1,375 above the peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), of $57,301.

Earnings variation is wide enough here that the field of study deserves close attention. The downside earnings scenario is $47,139 and the upside scenario is $77,840, both four years after completion and based on the program mix.

Program medians show part of that spread: Nursing reaches $89,958, Computer Science reaches $85,353, and Public Health reaches $75,679. These are program-level medians, not promises for individual completers.

For graduates who enter the workforce, four-year earnings leave out those continuing their education. At Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania, an estimated 27.4% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix rather than observed enrollment. That estimate gives the earnings snapshot a narrower frame.

Median earnings · four years after completion: $58,676
Rank for difference from expectations: 36th percentile

Four-year median earnings against two benchmarks

Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania reported median: $58,676
Peer schools comparable schools · $1,375 below Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania: $57,301
Model expectation what similar students would be expected to earn · $5,024 above Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania: $63,700

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.

How many Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania first-year students return?

First-time, full-time bachelor’s cohorts · CDS 2025-26

Returned the following fall: 78.8%

Source: Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania Common Data Set 2025-26, B22 retention.

How could earnings differ from the median?

Earnings four years after completion

Planning rangeReported median

Lower estimate: $47,139
Median · reported: $58,676
Higher estimate: $77,840

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 Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania 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.

Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania graduates’ reported earnings are $5,024 below that expectation, the 36th 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 Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania caused a student to earn. Read how expected earnings are estimated.

Which fields at Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania report the highest earnings?

The largest programs at Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania show a wide earnings range, and the highest-paid fields are not the ones awarding the most degrees. Business Administration and Management is the biggest, with 343 degrees awarded and median earnings of $64,030 four years after completion.

Azimuth ranks it #207 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field. Nursing is the second-largest program and the highest-earning, with 181 degrees awarded and median earnings of $89,958.

Azimuth ranks it #166 nationally in its field. Criminal Justice awards 147 degrees and its graduates earn $55,909, with a national rank of #96.

At the more moderate end, Teacher Education and Psychology award 147 and 137 degrees, with earnings of $48,662 and $49,137. Azimuth ranks them #125 and #232 nationally. The earnings picture depends heavily on the field a student chooses.

Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania has 22 ranked bachelor’s programs, with published earnings data across 38 fields. The strongest national field rankings sit alongside programs with markedly different award volumes and earnings.

Azimuth ranks Security Science and Technology #2 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field; it awarded 84 degrees and has median earnings of $73,289 four years after completion. Health/Medical Preparatory Programs ranks #3 nationally, with 55 degrees awarded and $73,383 in median earnings.

Communication Disorders Sciences and Services holds an Azimuth rank of #25 nationally, awarded 65 degrees, and shows median earnings of $66,538 four years after completion.

Highest reported four-year program earnings

Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing: $89,958
Computer Science: $85,353
Public Health: $75,679
Physics: $73,703
Health/Medical Preparatory Programs: $73,383
Security Science and Technology: $73,289
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions: $70,181
Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management: $69,048

Explore Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania program cohorts and field ranks for more context.

Further analysis

Field choice shapes the modeled earnings range. Scenarios grounded in the program mix place the downside at $47,139, the typical case at $58,676, and the upside at $77,840.

At the named ends, Nursing has median earnings of $89,958 four years after completion, while Teacher Education has $48,662.

Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania has a mixed earnings picture: its median sits in the 46th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Four years after completion, federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled have median earnings of $58,676.

Azimuth places that earnings measure among nonprofit four-year institutions, and the earnings cohort contains 4,223 completers. Graduates earn about $5,024 less than the model expects for similar students.

An estimated 27.4% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix rather than observed enrollment. Earnings scenarios provide another way to read the program mix rather than a prediction for any individual.

The typical earnings scenario is $58,676 four years after completion. The median earnings and model comparison point in different directions, so the return picture is not uniform.

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.