Top Ranked Programs
Swarthmore College's program mix is anchored in Social Sciences, reflecting the college's identity as a selective liberal arts institution where quantitative and policy-oriented fields sit alongside the humanities and natural sciences. Economics is the largest program with 80 graduates annually, followed by Artificial Intelligence with 54 graduates, Mathematics with 53 graduates, Political Science with 36 graduates, and Biology, General with 30 graduates. The dominant concentration in Social Sciences — roughly 24% of degree output — is complemented by Arts at 5% and Education at 5%. The highest-earning programs reveal where Swarthmore College delivers its strongest direct-to-workforce outcomes. Azimuth ranks Artificial Intelligence #11 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions, with 54 graduates earning $150,942. Azimuth ranks Economics #23 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions, with 80 graduates earning $128,051; Azimuth ranks Engineering #15 for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions, with 28 graduates earning $78,519. The program that combines the largest cohort scale with strong earnings — Economics — functions as the institution's highest aggregate-return major. Several of Swarthmore College's programs are grad-school-dependent pathways — notably Artificial Intelligence and Mathematics — where four-year earnings undercount long-run trajectory. Azimuth ranks Programs such as Political Science, which Azimuth #188 for median earnings among nonprofit four-year institutions four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions with 36 graduates earning $58,372, and Biology, General, ranked #201 with 30 graduates earning $57,754, represent more direct-to-workforce pathways.