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Career outcomes brief

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# Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Career Outcomes & Earnings

Updated September 30, 2026

[Overview](/school/southern-illinois-university-edwardsville/)[Cost & aid](/school/southern-illinois-university-edwardsville/cost/)Outcomes[Admissions](/school/southern-illinois-university-edwardsville/admissions/)[Majors](/school/southern-illinois-university-edwardsville/majors/)[Similar schools](/school/southern-illinois-university-edwardsville/similar/)

**On this page**+

## How much do SIUE graduates earn?

The reported median is $65,199 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $57,301 as its benchmark; the difference is $7,898 per year.

At Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, the return picture combines above-peer earnings with [earnings beyond expectations](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/). Azimuth places the return pillar in the 67th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $8,294 more than the model expects for similar students. That earnings-beyond-expectations result, the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students, is in the 80th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $7,341. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $953.

Median earnings are $65,199 four years after completion, in the 66th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $57,301; the university sits $7,898 above it. The peer comparison and modeled expectation point in the same direction.

Program choice brings a broad range of modeled earnings outcomes at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. The downside earnings scenario is $46,501 and the upside scenario is $88,204, both modeled from the program mix rather than observed groups.

Across 32 programs with published earnings data, the higher end includes Computer Science at $106,082, Electrical Engineering at $99,325, and Computer Engineering at $94,494 in median earnings four years after completion. Those program results show why the earnings scenarios span widely.

Further study is part of the context for reading the university's four-year earnings. An estimated 28.8% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix.

Because the earnings measure covers completers who are working and not enrolled, it does not include those continuing their education.

**Median earnings · four years after completion**
$65,199

**Rank for difference from expectations**
80th percentile

Four-year median earnings against two benchmarks

**SIUE reported median**
$65,199

**Peer schools comparable schools · $7,898 below SIUE**
$57,301

**Model expectation what similar students would be expected to earn · $8,294 below SIUE**
$56,905

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 $46,501 to $88,204, around the reported median of $65,199. Compare the lower scenario with [SIUE borrowing and monthly payments](/school/southern-illinois-university-edwardsville/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**
$46,501

**Median · reported**
$65,199

**Higher estimate**
$88,204

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 SIUE 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).

SIUE graduates’ reported earnings are $8,294 above that expectation, the 80th 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 SIUE 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.**
+$7,341

**Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.**
+$953

**Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.**
+$8,294

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

## Which fields at SIUE report the highest earnings?

Program-level earnings range from technical fields with higher medians to large, broad majors with more moderate results. Computer Science reports median earnings of $106,082 four years after completion and 72 degrees awarded.

[Azimuth ranks](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/) it #107 nationally among bachelor’s programs in its field. Nursing records $83,867 and 479 degrees awarded; Azimuth ranks it #141 nationally in its field.

Business Administration and Management shows median earnings of $65,403 with 300 degrees awarded, and Azimuth ranks it #170 nationally within its field. Psychology has $48,951 in median earnings and 177 degrees awarded; its Azimuth national field rank is #217.

The higher technical and health figures alongside the more moderate broad-major figures make the return picture depend substantially on field.

The top-ranked program is Geography and Cartography. Southern Illinois University Edwardsville has 24 ranked bachelor’s programs in Azimuth’s field rankings among nonprofit four-year institutions.

[Azimuth ranks](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/) Geography and Cartography #5 nationally; it awarded 23 degrees, and its completers had median earnings of $75,877 four years after completion. Nursing ranks #141 nationally, awarded 479 degrees, and had median earnings of $83,867 four years after completion.

Chemistry ranks #62 nationally, awarded 21 degrees, and had median earnings of $70,541 four years after completion. These fields show that rank, scale, and earnings do not always line up in the same way.

Highest reported four-year program earnings

**Computer Science**
$106,082

**Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering**
$99,325

**Computer Engineering**
$94,494

**Civil Engineering**
$85,969

**Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing**
$83,867

**Industrial Engineering**
$82,744

**Mechanical Engineering**
$81,428

**Geography and Cartography**
$75,877

[Explore SIUE program cohorts and field ranks](/school/southern-illinois-university-edwardsville/majors/#largest-cohorts) for more context.

## Further analysis

Program choice leaves a broad earnings range at the university. Earnings scenarios grounded in its program mix put the downside at $46,501, the typical case at $65,199, and the upside at $88,204.

Computer Science reaches $106,082 four years after completion, whereas Psychology is at $48,951. The spread shows that field choice matters substantially.

For graduates entering the workforce, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville has median earnings of $65,199 four years after completion among federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled. Azimuth places those earnings in the 66th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

The measure draws on an earnings cohort of 3,050 completers. On [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, graduates earn about $8,294 more than the model expects for similar students.

Earnings scenarios based on the program mix put the downside at $46,501 and the upside at $88,204, with the typical scenario aligning with the observed median. An estimated 28.8% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix.

The scenario range and higher-than-expected earnings describe a favorable workforce picture with room for different program paths.

## 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/).