Graduates of Swarthmore College earn median 4-year earnings of $65,618, placing Swarthmore in the 70.3rd percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. That figure runs well above the $57,361 median at comparable institutions (same control and size band). Azimuth ranks Swarthmore #249 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions — in the 83.2nd percentile for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions.
The earnings pattern reflects Swarthmore's focus on Social Sciences, which represents 24% of graduates. Economics is the largest program with 80 graduates earning median 4-year earnings of $128,051, and Azimuth ranks the program #23 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions per the program-ranking methodology. Azimuth ranks Computer and Information Sciences, General #12 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions with 54 graduates earning $150,942, while Political Science and Government ranks #179 nationally with 36 graduates earning median 4-year earnings of $58,372.
Graduates of Swarthmore College earn median 4-year earnings of $65,618, placing Swarthmore in the 70.3rd percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. That figure runs well above the $57,361 median at comparable institutions (same control and size band). Azimuth ranks Swarthmore #249 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions — in the 83.2nd percentile for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions.
The earnings pattern reflects Swarthmore's focus on Social Sciences, which represents 24% of graduates. Economics is the largest program with 80 graduates earning median 4-year earnings of $128,051, and Azimuth ranks the program #23 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions per the program-ranking methodology. Azimuth ranks Computer and Information Sciences, General #12 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions with 54 graduates earning $150,942, while Political Science and Government ranks #179 nationally with 36 graduates earning median 4-year earnings of $58,372.
Latest FE earnings field: 10-year
Lower quartile, 10-year field
How graduate earnings grow across the currently available FE horizons.
Financial justification for the investment.
Graduates of Swarthmore College earn median 4-year earnings of $65,618, placing Swarthmore in the 70.3rd percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. That figure runs well above the $57,361 median at comparable institutions (same control and size band). Azimuth ranks Swarthmore #249 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions — in the 83.2nd percentile for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions.
The earnings pattern reflects Swarthmore's focus on Social Sciences, which represents 24% of graduates. Economics is the largest program with 80 graduates earning median 4-year earnings of $128,051, and Azimuth ranks the program #23 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions per the program-ranking methodology. Azimuth ranks Computer and Information Sciences, General #12 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions with 54 graduates earning $150,942, while Political Science and Government ranks #179 nationally with 36 graduates earning median 4-year earnings of $58,372.
Program mix and student pathways explain much of the earnings story.
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.
Upper quartile, 10-year field
Graduates of Swarthmore College earn median 4-year earnings of $65,618, placing Swarthmore in the 70.3rd percentile for median earnings four years after enrollment among nonprofit four-year institutions. That figure runs well above the $57,361 median at comparable institutions (same control and size band). Azimuth ranks Swarthmore #249 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions — in the 83.2nd percentile for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions.
The earnings pattern reflects Swarthmore's focus on Social Sciences, which represents 24% of graduates. Economics is the largest program with 80 graduates earning median 4-year earnings of $128,051, and Azimuth ranks the program #23 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions per the program-ranking methodology. Azimuth ranks Computer and Information Sciences, General #12 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions with 54 graduates earning $150,942, while Political Science and Government ranks #179 nationally with 36 graduates earning median 4-year earnings of $58,372.
See which programs drive the strongest earnings and career trajectories
