Career outcomes brief

North Carolina Central University Career Outcomes & Earnings

Updated September 30, 2026

How much do North Carolina Central University graduates earn?

The reported median is $50,812 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $57,301 as its benchmark; the difference is -$6,489 per year.

Four years after completion, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled show a median of $50,812. This places North Carolina Central University in the 20th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

This median is $6,489 below the $57,301 figure for comparable institutions (same type and size). Azimuth places the return at the 28th percentile.

Graduates earn about $1,364 less than expects for similar students. The gap lands in the 50th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $4,191. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $5,555. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $296.

The earnings scenarios show a wide range, from $43,397 on the downside to $74,787 on the upside. These are scenarios estimated from the program mix, not observed groups of graduates.

At the upper end, Nursing graduates earn $90,760 four years after completion, and Computer and Information Sciences graduates earn $88,053. The largest program, Criminal Justice, posts median earnings of $48,443.

An estimated 28.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix rather than observed enrollment. Because four-year earnings cover completers who are working and not enrolled, those continuing their education are outside that earnings snapshot.

Median earnings · four years after completion: $50,812
Rank for difference from expectations: 50th percentile

Four-year median earnings against two benchmarks

North Carolina Central University reported median: $50,812
Peer schools comparable schools · $6,489 above North Carolina Central University: $57,301
Model expectation what similar students would be expected to earn · $1,364 above North Carolina Central University: $52,176

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?

Earnings four years after completion

Planning rangeReported median

Lower estimate: $43,397
Median · reported: $50,812
Higher estimate: $74,787

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 North Carolina Central University 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.

North Carolina Central University graduates’ reported earnings are $1,364 below that expectation, the 50th 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 North Carolina Central University caused a student to earn. Read how expected earnings are estimated.

Which fields at North Carolina Central University report the highest earnings?

The earnings picture at North Carolina Central University is split between a handful of high-return fields and a larger set of programs with more moderate outcomes. Nursing stands well apart: its graduates earn a median of $90,760 four years after completion, from 60 degrees awarded.

Azimuth ranks it #210 nationally within its field. The largest programs tell a different story.

Criminal Justice awards 122 degrees a year and reports median earnings of $48,443, with an Azimuth national rank of #177. Business Administration and Management follows at 102 degrees and $54,999, ranking #319 nationally.

Two smaller programs show stronger national standing. Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences holds an Azimuth national rank of #13 with 65 degrees awarded and median earnings of $46,136. Social Sciences ranks #34 nationally from 100 degrees and reports $43,859.

North Carolina Central University has 14 nationally ranked bachelor's programs. The two largest degree families are Social Sciences and Business, which together account for just over a quarter of degrees awarded.

The single largest program is Criminal Justice, with 122 degrees awarded a year. Azimuth ranks it #177 nationally in its field, and graduates earn a median of $48,443 four years after completion.

The highest-earning program is Nursing, at $90,760. It awarded 60 degrees.

The best nationally ranked program is Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences, which Azimuth ranks #13 in its field and #1 in North Carolina, with median earnings of $46,136.

Highest reported four-year program earnings

Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing: $90,760
Computer and Information Sciences, General: $88,053
Accounting and Related Services: $78,048
Business Administration, Management and Operations: $54,999
Biology, General: $54,192
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods: $53,794
Social Work: $49,856
Criminal Justice and Corrections: $48,443

Explore North Carolina Central University program cohorts and field ranks for more context.

Further analysis

Earnings scenarios estimated from the program mix range from a downside of $43,397 to a typical outcome of $50,812 and an upside of $74,787. The spread is wide: Nursing graduates reach $90,760 four years after completion, while Social Sciences, the lowest-earning among the largest programs, stands at $43,859.

Among federally aided graduates of North Carolina Central University who are working and not enrolled, the median four years after completion is $50,812, measured from 1,566 completers. That is $6,489 below the $57,301 median for comparable institutions (same type and size).

That median sits at the 20th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $1,364 less than the model expects for similar students.

That result sits at the 50th percentile. Estimated from the program mix, the earnings scenarios are $43,397 on the downside, $50,812 in a typical case and $74,787 on the upside.

An estimated 28.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix. The typical scenario is below the peer median and the model's expectation, yet the upside scenario and graduate-school estimate indicate varied paths.

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.