Programs & majors brief

The University of Alabama Majors & Programs

Updated

Which majors earn the most at The University of Alabama?

Program choice at The University of Alabama spans higher-earning technical fields and more moderate-earning interdisciplinary and human-sciences fields four years after completion. Management Information Systems and Services pairs median earnings of $105,393 with 104 degrees awarded; Azimuth ranks it #12 nationally within its field.

Chemical Engineering reports $100,857 in median earnings across 159 degrees awarded and holds an Azimuth national field rank of #37. On the more moderate-earning side, Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies shows $56,945 and 89 degrees awarded, with Azimuth placing it #8 nationally within its field.

Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences records $57,205 in median earnings from 120 degrees awarded and ranks #2 nationally in its field by Azimuth. The figures show that a strong field rank and four-year earnings do not always move in lockstep.

Major mix · each dot ≈ 1% of completions

Share of reported completions in the bachelor’s programs included here. Each dot represents approximately 1% of those completions. Counts are credentials, not unique students; excluded programs are not zero activity.

  • Business2,098 · 28.6%
  • Engineering837 · 11.4%
  • Social sciences705 · 9.6%
  • Health professions685 · 9.3%
  • Communication668 · 9.1%
  • Other2,340 · 31.9%

67 of 67 programs shown

Four-year earnings · first six matching programs
Computer and Information Sciences, General 95 degrees awarded
$115,980
Management Information Systems and Services 104 degrees awarded
$105,393
Chemical Engineering 159 degrees awarded
$100,857
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering 79 degrees awarded
$98,943
Mechanical Engineering 300 degrees awarded
$95,079
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering 86 degrees awarded
$91,999

Each bar is a field’s median. Program size counts degrees awarded, not unique people or the earnings sample.

Compare all matching programs
Reported bachelor’s programs · earnings, program size and field ranks
ProgramDegrees awarded4-yr earningsField rank
Computer and Information Sciences, General95$115,980#35
Management Information Systems and Services104$105,393#12
Chemical Engineering159$100,857#37
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering79$98,943#101
Mechanical Engineering300$95,079#64
Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering86$91,999#42
Civil Engineering129$87,685#68
Accounting and Related Services230$87,621#59
Business/Managerial Economics small degree count6$86,114—
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing420$85,532#153
Finance and Financial Management Services540$85,020#58
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods77$79,811#44
Mathematics90$77,899#68
Marketing581$77,451#34
Business Administration, Management and Operations274$69,715#153
Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication321$68,227#22
Family and Consumer Economics and Related Studies40$65,674#4
Political Science and Government203$61,617#130
Communication and Media Studies122$61,548#84
Design and Applied Arts27$60,546#62
Biology, General202$59,637#157
Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences, General120$57,205#2
Foods, Nutrition, and Related Services177$57,002#12
Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies, General89$56,945#8
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services100$56,071#93
Radio, Television, and Digital Communication112$55,894#22
International Relations and National Security Studies34$55,419#62
Journalism113$55,043#51
Apparel and Textiles61$54,254#25
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas small degree count13$53,940—
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions21$53,616#83
Hospitality Administration/Management90$53,180#57
Natural Resources Conservation and Research24$52,619#107
Dance40$51,744—
Public Health144$51,588#85
Special Education and Teaching42$50,763#50
History92$50,213#140
Psychology, General292$49,900#193
Social Work75$49,561#135
Geography and Cartography small degree count12$49,269—
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods109$49,007#130
Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services146$45,751#59
English Language and Literature, General94$44,278#210
Fine and Studio Arts44$41,100#147
Anthropology21$35,701—
Music41$31,666#148
Area Studies small degree count9Too few graduates to report—
Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies small degree count5Too few graduates to report—
Computer Engineering21Too few graduates to report—
Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering small degree count19Too few graduates to report—
Metallurgical Engineering small degree count19Too few graduates to report—
Construction Engineering small degree count13Too few graduates to report—
Architectural Engineering small degree count12Too few graduates to report—
Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics45Too few graduates to report—
Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and Services22Too few graduates to report—
Microbiological Sciences and Immunology small degree count17Too few graduates to report—
Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology small degree count17Too few graduates to report—
Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness181Too few graduates to report—
Philosophy22Too few graduates to report—
Religion/Religious Studies small degree count12Too few graduates to report—
Chemistry46Too few graduates to report—
Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences small degree count14Too few graduates to report—
Physics small degree count13Too few graduates to report—
Criminology260Too few graduates to report—
Economics175Too few graduates to report—
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft24Too few graduates to report—
Business/Commerce, General196Too few graduates to report—

Program data and definitions · How to evaluate program rankings

What are the largest programs at The University of Alabama?

Ten largest programs by degrees awarded
Marketing
581
Finance and Financial Management Services
540
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
420
Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication
321
Mechanical Engineering
300
Psychology, General
292
Business Administration, Management and Operations
274
Criminology
260
Accounting and Related Services
230
Political Science and Government
203

Counts describe degrees awarded in the reporting period, not current enrollment. Program data and definitions

How do The University of Alabama majors rank nationally?

National program rankings

  1. Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences, General#2
  2. Family and Consumer Economics and Related Studies#4
  3. Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies, General#8
  4. Foods, Nutrition, and Related Services#12
  5. Management Information Systems and Services#12
  6. Radio, Television, and Digital Communication#22
  7. Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication#22
  8. Apparel and Textiles#25
  9. Marketing#34
  10. Computer and Information Sciences, General#35
  11. Chemical Engineering#37
  12. Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering#42
  13. Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods#44
  14. Special Education and Teaching#50

Programs ranked in the national top 50, supplemented by the largest ranked programs when needed to show ten. Fewer appear when fewer ranks are reported. Each rank compares bachelor’s programs in the same field; field sizes differ.

How Azimuth compares programs across colleges

Further analysis

Azimuth's program rankings score 41 bachelor's programs at The University of Alabama against national peers, using four-year earnings among federally aided completers, debt and cohort size rather than reputation. The university publishes earnings data for 46 fields.

Business leads the bachelor's degrees awarded at The University of Alabama, at 28.6% of the total. Engineering and Social Sciences together account for 11.4% and 9.6% of degrees awarded.

Program earnings cover federally aided completers. Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences ranks #2 nationally, with graduates earning $57,205 four years after completion.

Management Information Systems and Services ranks #12 and reports median earnings of $105,393. Marketing is the largest program at 581 degrees awarded, ranking #34 with graduate earnings of $77,451.

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.