Graduates of South Dakota State University earn median 4-year earnings of $63,042, placing South Dakota State University in the 63.2 percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $4,465 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing South Dakota State University in the 74.5 percentile for earnings beyond expectations among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks South Dakota State University #443 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions. These outcomes reflect a career trajectory that aligns with South Dakota's regional labor market while positioning graduates competitively for advancement beyond the state. The earnings pattern is anchored in health-related fields, which dominate the institution's degree output. Nursing is the largest program with 336 graduates earning median 4-year earnings of $77,932, representing 0.9x the national benchmark for the field. The Animal Sciences program graduates 117 students with median 4-year earnings of $53,784, while Mechanical Engineering and $87,704 round out the institution's core economic profile. The concentration in Health fields — including Biology, General and Business/Managerial Economics — reflects both the institution's academic strengths and the stable, in-demand career pathways that characterize the upper Midwest labor market. This program mix supports consistent early-career earnings and long-term career stability for graduates who remain in or near the region.
Graduates of South Dakota State University earn median 4-year earnings of $63,042, placing South Dakota State University in the 63.2 percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $4,465 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing South Dakota State University in the 74.5 percentile for earnings beyond expectations among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks South Dakota State University #443 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions. These outcomes reflect a career trajectory that aligns with South Dakota's regional labor market while positioning graduates competitively for advancement beyond the state. The earnings pattern is anchored in health-related fields, which dominate the institution's degree output. Nursing is the largest program with 336 graduates earning median 4-year earnings of $77,932, representing 0.9x the national benchmark for the field. The Animal Sciences program graduates 117 students with median 4-year earnings of $53,784, while Mechanical Engineering and $87,704 round out the institution's core economic profile. The concentration in Health fields — including Biology, General and Business/Managerial Economics — reflects both the institution's academic strengths and the stable, in-demand career pathways that characterize the upper Midwest labor market. This program mix supports consistent early-career earnings and long-term career stability for graduates who remain in or near the region.
Latest FE earnings field: 10-year
How graduate earnings grow across the currently available FE horizons.
Financial justification for the investment.
Healthy debt burden. Most graduates can manage $23,250 in debt with typical earnings.
Graduates of South Dakota State University earn median 4-year earnings of $63,042, placing South Dakota State University in the 63.2 percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $4,465 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing South Dakota State University in the 74.5 percentile for earnings beyond expectations among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks South Dakota State University #443 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions. These outcomes reflect a career trajectory that aligns with South Dakota's regional labor market while positioning graduates competitively for advancement beyond the state. The earnings pattern is anchored in health-related fields, which dominate the institution's degree output. Nursing is the largest program with 336 graduates earning median 4-year earnings of $77,932, representing 0.9x the national benchmark for the field. The Animal Sciences program graduates 117 students with median 4-year earnings of $53,784, while Mechanical Engineering and $87,704 round out the institution's core economic profile. The concentration in Health fields — including Biology, General and Business/Managerial Economics — reflects both the institution's academic strengths and the stable, in-demand career pathways that characterize the upper Midwest labor market. This program mix supports consistent early-career earnings and long-term career stability for graduates who remain in or near the region.
Program mix and student pathways explain much of the earnings story.
South Dakota State University's program mix centers on health, agriculture, and engineering fields — a portfolio aligned with South Dakota's workforce needs and the university's land-grant mission. Nursing is the largest program with 336 graduates annually, followed by Animal Sciences, Mechanical Engineering, Biology, General, and Business/Managerial Economics. Across 0 ranked programs serving roughly 1,997 students annually, several deliver strong earnings outcomes that reflect regional labor-market demand for applied health and agricultural professionals. The earnings pattern shows consistent strength in health-related fields. Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration, Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration, and Administration graduates earn median earnings of $122,169 four years after enrollment, while Mechanical Engineering graduates earn $87,704 and Nursing graduates earn $77,932. Biology, General and Animal Sciences round out the highest-earning programs with graduates earning $54,446 and $53,784 respectively. These outcomes reflect the university's strength in nursing, pharmacy, and health-sciences pathways where regional employers actively recruit. Nursing, the institution's largest program, demonstrates how scale and earnings align — 336 graduates annually with median earnings of $77,932 creates substantial workforce presence in the region. Animal Sciences and Mechanical Engineering similarly combine meaningful cohort size with solid earnings, supporting both direct-to-workforce pathways and graduate-school-dependent trajectories. The supply and demand for college graduates provides context for how South Dakota State University's dominant program families — particularly health and agriculture — align with regional and national labor-market demand.
Lower quartile, 10-year field
Upper quartile, 10-year field
Graduates of South Dakota State University earn median 4-year earnings of $63,042, placing South Dakota State University in the 63.2 percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. Graduates earn about $4,465 more than similar students at comparable institutions, placing South Dakota State University in the 74.5 percentile for earnings beyond expectations among nonprofit four-year institutions. Azimuth ranks South Dakota State University #443 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions. These outcomes reflect a career trajectory that aligns with South Dakota's regional labor market while positioning graduates competitively for advancement beyond the state. The earnings pattern is anchored in health-related fields, which dominate the institution's degree output. Nursing is the largest program with 336 graduates earning median 4-year earnings of $77,932, representing 0.9x the national benchmark for the field. The Animal Sciences program graduates 117 students with median 4-year earnings of $53,784, while Mechanical Engineering and $87,704 round out the institution's core economic profile. The concentration in Health fields — including Biology, General and Business/Managerial Economics — reflects both the institution's academic strengths and the stable, in-demand career pathways that characterize the upper Midwest labor market. This program mix supports consistent early-career earnings and long-term career stability for graduates who remain in or near the region.
See which programs drive the strongest earnings and career trajectories
