SDSU Career Outcomes: $68K Median Earnings (2026)

How much do SDSU graduates earn?

The reported median is $68,268 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $65,610 as its benchmark; the difference is $2,658 per year.

Azimuth places the return for San Diego State University at the 55th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $21 less than expects for similar students, effectively at the expected level, a result in the 54th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $4,945. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $4,966.

Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $1,017. Four years after completion, the median earnings for completers reach $68,268, which lands in the 73rd percentile nationally.

Compared with the peer median of $65,610 among comparable institutions (same type and size), the university sits above by $2,658.

Earnings scenarios, estimated from the program mix, show a wide range: a downside of $49,071 and an upside of $90,895. These are not observed groups of graduates.

The upper end is led by Nursing, where graduates earn a median of $120,799 four years after completion. Computer Engineering follows at $116,842, and Electrical Engineering follows at $106,416.

An estimated 28.8% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure derived from the university's program mix rather than observed enrollment. Because four-year earnings figures capture only those working and not enrolled, the median earnings understate the eventual earnings of the sizable share of completers who pursue advanced degrees.

How could earnings differ from the median?

Earnings four years after completion

Planning rangeReported median

Lower estimate: $49,071
Median · reported: $68,268
Higher estimate: $90,895

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 SDSU 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.

SDSU graduates’ reported earnings are $21 below that expectation, the 54th 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 SDSU caused a student to earn. Read how expected earnings are estimated.

Which fields at SDSU report the highest earnings?

Nursing leads San Diego State University's ranked programs with a median of $120,799 four years after completion, 212 degrees awarded, and an Azimuth national rank of #19. Computer Engineering and Electrical Engineering follow at $116,842 and $106,416, with 116 and 106 degrees awarded respectively.

Among the largest programs, Business Administration and Management accounts for 1,875 degrees awarded and a median of $69,902, ranking #68 nationally. Kinesiology and Physical Education reaches $59,914 and an Azimuth national rank of #39 on 406 degrees, while Psychology sits at $51,021 with a national rank of #114.

San Diego State University offers 51 nationally ranked bachelor's programs, with earnings data published for 53 fields. Two programs stand out for their national standing: Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering and Microbiological Sciences and Immunology each hold an Azimuth rank of #4 within their fields.

Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering awarded 38 degrees and shows median earnings of $88,417 four years after completion. Microbiological Sciences and Immunology is smaller, with 25 degrees awarded, and its graduates earn a median of $81,122.

The largest program by degrees awarded is Business Administration and Management, which granted 1,875 degrees and ranks #68 nationally. Its completers earn a median of $69,902 four years after graduating.

Nursing is the highest-earning program, with a median of $120,799 and 212 degrees awarded, followed by Computer Engineering at $116,842.

Further analysis

Earnings scenarios grounded in the university's program mix show a downside of $49,071, a typical outcome of $68,268, and an upside of $90,895. Anchoring the range in named programs, Nursing graduates earn a median of $120,799 four years after completion, while Psychology graduates earn a median of $51,021.

Four years after completion, the median earnings of San Diego State University graduates stand at $68,268, placing the university in the 73rd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. That figure runs above the median of $65,610 at comparable institutions (same type and size) by $2,658, and it reflects a cohort of 8,479 completers.

Graduates earn about $21 less than the model expects for similar students, effectively at the expected level. Earnings scenarios, which are anchored on the university's program mix, sketch a typical outcome of $68,268, a downside scenario of $49,071, and an upside scenario of $90,895.

An estimated 28.8% of programs' graduates continue to graduate study, a figure derived from the program mix rather than observed enrollment.

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.