College Azimuth

Career outcomes brief

Florida Atlantic University Career Outcomes & Earnings

Updated

How much do FAU graduates earn?

The reported median is $59,690 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $65,610 as its benchmark; the difference is -$5,920 per year.

Florida Atlantic University's strongest are mobility and affordability, not return: Azimuth places the return pillar in the 38th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Four years after completion, graduates earn a median of $59,690, in the 50th percentile nationally.

That sits below the peer median of $65,610 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $5,920. Graduates earn about $2,172 less than expects for similar students, a result in the 47th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $7,145. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $9,317.

Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $809. The median earnings figure and the below-expectations gap point the same way, while the university's strongest outcomes are in mobility and affordability, where it ranks in the top decile nationally.

Earnings four years after completion vary considerably by field at Florida Atlantic University. The downside earnings scenario sits at $47,387 and the upside scenario reaches $82,943, a range that reflects the mix of 44 programs with published data.

The highest-earning programs show the upper end of that spread: Electrical Engineering completers earn a median of $93,561, Nursing graduates reach $91,953, and Computer Engineering completers earn $90,664.

An estimated 30.0% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure derived from the university's program mix rather than observed enrollment. Because the four-year earnings data capture only those working and not enrolled, the median earnings figures understate the eventual earnings of the sizable share of completers who pursue advanced degrees.

Median earnings · four years after completion
$59,690
Rank for difference from expectations
47th percentile
Four-year median earnings against two benchmarks
FAU reported median
$59,690
Peer schools comparable schools · $5,920 above FAU
$65,610
Model expectation what similar students would be expected to earn · $2,172 above FAU
$61,862

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 could earnings differ from the median?

The planning scenarios range from $47,387 to $82,943, around the reported median of $59,690. Compare the lower scenario with FAU borrowing and monthly payments to see how a smaller income could change your plan.

Modeled from the school’s program mix; not salary percentiles or a forecast for one graduate.

Earnings four years after completion
Planning rangeReported median
Lower estimate
$47,387
Median · reported
$59,690
Higher estimate
$82,943

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 FAU 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.

FAU graduates’ reported earnings are $2,172 below that expectation, the 47th 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 FAU caused a student to earn. Read how expected earnings are estimated.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$7,145
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
-$9,317
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
-$2,172

These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

Which fields at FAU report the highest earnings?

Florida Atlantic University's highest-earning bachelor's programs are concentrated in engineering and computing, while the largest programs by degrees awarded span a wider earnings range. Electrical Engineering leads at $93,561 four years after completion, though it awarded only 42 degrees.

Nursing, a much larger program with 374 degrees awarded, follows at $91,953. Among the largest programs, Biology awarded 491 degrees and shows median earnings of $47,707, with an Azimuth national rank of #282 in its field.

Business Administration and Management reached $62,058 on 323 degrees awarded. The contrast between the engineering programs and the larger, moderate-earning fields like Biology and Psychology ($48,754, 328 degrees) shows how much field choice matters for earnings at the university.

Florida Atlantic University publishes earnings data for 44 bachelor's programs, and 39 of those hold an Azimuth national rank. The largest program, Biology, awarded 491 degrees and shows a median of $47,707 four years after completion, ranking #282 nationally and #9 in Florida.

Nursing is the highest-earning large program: it awarded 374 degrees, and its completers earn a median of $91,953. Among the best-ranked programs, Ocean Engineering holds a national rank of #3 with 20 degrees awarded.

Homeland Security, Law Enforcement, Firefighting and Related Protective Services ranks #4 nationally, awarded 56 degrees, and reports a median of $56,162.

Highest reported four-year program earnings
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering
$93,561
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
$91,953
Computer Engineering
$90,664
Mechanical Engineering
$89,583
Computer and Information Sciences, General
$89,476
Civil Engineering
$84,778
Ocean Engineering
$80,093
Accounting and Related Services
$77,465

Explore FAU program cohorts and field ranks for more context.

Further analysis

The spread between the university's highest- and lowest-earning large programs shows how much field choice matters. Electrical Engineering graduates earn a median of $93,561 four years after completion, while Biology, the largest program, sits at $47,707.

Earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix place the downside at $47,387, the typical outcome at $59,690, and the upside at $82,943.

Four years after completion, the median earnings of Florida Atlantic University graduates stand at $59,690, which sits below the median of $65,610 at comparable institutions (same type and size). The earnings cohort includes 6,488 completers.

Graduates earn about $2,172 less than the model expects for similar students, a result that places the university in the 47th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings scenarios anchored on the university's program mix show a typical outcome matching the observed median, with a downside scenario of $47,387 and an upside scenario reaching $82,943.

An estimated 30.0% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix. The earnings picture is mixed.

The median sits below the peer benchmark and graduates earn less than the model expects, yet the upside scenario reaches well into the eighty-thousands, reflecting the presence of higher-earning programs like Electrical Engineering and Nursing.

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.