Graduate earnings are in line with similar institutions.
What graduates earn 10 years after enrollment.
Annual salary at 10 years
Lower quartile earnings
Upper quartile earnings
How graduate earnings grow in the decade after enrollment.
Montclair State graduates experience steady earnings growth throughout their early careers. Median earnings rise from $47,944 six years after graduation to $56,215 at eight years and $61,415 at ten years, representing consistent 28.1% growth over the four-year period.
How outcomes compare to similar institutions.
Graduate earnings align with peer institutions — outcomes are in line with similar schools.
Financial justification for the investment.
Healthy debt burden. Most graduates can manage $22,000 in debt with typical earnings.
Montclair State graduates carry median debt of $22,000, slightly above the peer median of $20,000 but within manageable ranges relative to post-graduation earnings. Student debt ranges from $8,750 at the 25th percentile to $27,000 at the 75th percentile, showing controlled borrowing patterns across the student body.
Montclair State delivers above-average return on educational investment, ranking at the 65.3rd percentile nationally. Graduates earn $6,731 beyond expectations compared to similar students, placing the university at the 78.8th percentile for earnings uplift—a strong indicator of institutional value creation.
Approximately 26.2% of graduates continue to graduate or professional study, indicating balanced preparation for both immediate workforce entry and ad...
Program mix explains much of the earnings story.
High-earning programs drive institutional return performance while serving diverse student interests. Accounting Technology ($77,806) and Artificial Intelligence ($77,141) represent the earnings leaders, demonstrating market demand for technical and business skills.
Communication programs deliver strong mid-range outcomes, with Communication and Media Studies at $57,399 and Digital Communication at $56,719. Business Administration serves the largest cohort (660 students) at $60,126 median earnings, showing consistency across substantial enrollment.
See which programs drive the strongest earnings and career trajectories
The earnings distribution from $38,809 to $84,277 shows a 2.2:1 ratio between top and bottom quartiles, indicating meaningful but not extreme variation in career outcomes. Low-income graduates earn $49,000, demonstrating that the university effectively supports economic mobility for students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
