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Career outcomes brief

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# Hope College Career Outcomes & Earnings

Updated September 30, 2026

[Overview](/school/hope-college/)[Cost & aid](/school/hope-college/cost/)Outcomes[Admissions](/school/hope-college/admissions/)[Majors](/school/hope-college/majors/)[Similar schools](/school/hope-college/similar/)

**On this page**+

## How much do Hope College graduates earn?

The reported median is $60,573 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $68,250 as its benchmark; the difference is \-$7,677 per year.

The return picture at Hope College is mixed, with Azimuth placing its return pillar in the 37th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. On [earnings beyond expectations](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/), the gap between graduate earnings and the model’s expectation for similar students, graduates earn about $11,239 less than the model expects for similar students.

That measure sits in the 16th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $3,870.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $15,109. Median earnings are $60,573 four years after completion, in the 53rd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions according to Azimuth.

The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $68,250, leaving Hope College $7,677 below it. The return picture is mixed: earnings sit below peers and below the model’s expectation.

Program choice makes the earnings outlook at Hope College broad rather than uniform. Earnings scenarios range from $47,229 in the downside case to $76,000 in the upside case, with $60,573 as the typical scenario; these are scenarios estimated from the program mix.

Across 17 programs with published earnings data, Computer and Information Sciences has median earnings of $92,116 four years after completion, Accounting has $86,253, and Engineering has $82,513. Those program figures show why the modeled range is wide.

An estimated 33.1% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix rather than observed enrollment. Because the four-year earnings measure includes completers who are working and not enrolled, it should be read alongside this estimate of further study.

**Median earnings · four years after completion**
$60,573

**Rank for difference from expectations**
16th percentile

Four-year median earnings against two benchmarks

**Hope College reported median**
$60,573

**Peer schools comparable schools · $7,677 above Hope College**
$68,250

**Model expectation what similar students would be expected to earn · $11,239 above Hope College**
$71,812

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](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/).

## How could earnings differ from the median?

The planning scenarios range from $47,229 to $76,000, around the reported median of $60,573. Compare the lower scenario with [Hope College borrowing and monthly payments](/school/hope-college/cost/) 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**
$47,229

**Median · reported**
$60,573

**Higher estimate**
$76,000

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](/analysis/median-roi-hides-a-harsh-reality/) explores the risk hidden by medians, using older ten-year entrant data. [Read about the move to four-year earnings](/analysis/college-scorecard-2026-4-year-vs-10-year-earnings-2-2/).

## Do Hope College 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](/methodology/#value-added).

Hope College graduates’ reported earnings are $11,239 below that expectation, the 16th 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 Hope College caused a student to earn. [Read how expected earnings are estimated](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/).

What explains value-added earnings?

**Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.**
+$3,870

**Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.**
\-$15,109

**Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.**
\-$11,239

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

## Which fields at Hope College report the highest earnings?

At Hope College, program earnings differ enough that the field chosen matters for the return picture. Computer and Information Sciences has median earnings of $92,116 four years after completion, with 13 degrees awarded.

Accounting records $86,253 in median earnings and awarded 15 degrees. Engineering combines 52 degrees awarded with median earnings of $82,513 four years after completion.

At a more moderate earnings level, Business Administration and Management awarded 120 degrees and reports $65,755. The higher-earning technical and accounting fields sit apart from the larger business program, making field-level earnings more informative than a single schoolwide figure.

Program-level earnings give a more varied view than a single collegewide median. Hope College publishes earnings for 17 bachelor's fields.

Computer and Information Sciences awarded 13 degrees and had median earnings of $92,116 four years after completion. Accounting awarded 15 degrees and had median earnings of $86,253 four years after completion.

Engineering awarded 52 degrees and had median earnings of $82,513 four years after completion. Nursing awarded 49 degrees and had median earnings of $75,738 four years after completion.

The differences among these fields make the choice of major central to the earnings picture.

Highest reported four-year program earnings

**Computer and Information Sciences, General**
$92,116

**Accounting and Related Services**
$86,253

**Engineering, General**
$82,513

**Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing**
$75,738

**Business Administration, Management and Operations**
$65,755

**Political Science and Government**
$62,936

**Communication and Media Studies**
$55,166

**Biology, General**
$54,538

[Explore Hope College program cohorts and field ranks](/school/hope-college/majors/#largest-cohorts) for more context.

## Further analysis

Earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix range from $47,229 in the downside scenario to $60,573 in the typical scenario and $76,000 in the upside scenario. Computer and Information Sciences reaches $92,116 four years after completion, while Psychology is at $52,980. The spread shows that field choice matters substantially for the modeled range.

For Hope College, median earnings are $60,573 four years after completion among federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled. Azimuth places those earnings in the 53rd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions; the measure draws on an earnings cohort of 749 completers.

[Earnings beyond expectations](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/), the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, offer a second lens. Graduates earn about $11,239 less than the model expects for similar students.

Earnings scenarios based on the program mix place typical earnings at $60,573, with a downside scenario of $47,229 and an upside scenario of $76,000. An estimated 33.1% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix.

The scenario range and graduate-study estimate show that postcollege paths vary across the program mix.

## Data & methodology

Sources and reporting periods: [methodology](/methodology/).

Analysis and methodology by [Daniel Rogers](/about/#founder), 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](/about/).