Career outcomes brief
University of California-San Diego Career Outcomes & Earnings
How much do UC San Diego graduates earn?
University of California-San Diego reports median earnings of $83,130 four years after completion. Its lower and higher planning estimates are $56,810 and $128,687.
The lower and higher estimates reflect different mixes of program earnings. They are not observed salary percentiles, the pay of the lowest- and highest-paid quarters of graduates, or probabilities for an individual student.
- Lower estimate
- $56,810
- Median · reported
- $83,130
- Higher estimate
- $128,687
Earnings sources and definitions
The lower estimate lets you examine a plan with less income than the school-wide median. Compare it with costs and with the fields you are considering, while keeping the modeled estimates separate from reported earnings.
Completers at University of California-San Diego earn about $24,112 more than expects for similar students. That result sits at the 98th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.
The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $9,785. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $14,327.
Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $5,596. Four years after completion, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $83,130, at the 91st percentile.
That is $17,520 above the $65,610 median for comparable institutions (same type and size). Azimuth places the return pillar at the 93rd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.
The earnings scenarios at University of California-San Diego span from a downside of $56,810 for lower-earning program clusters to an upside of $128,687 for higher-earning clusters. Individual program medians four years after completion illustrate the range: Computer Science graduates earn $159,487, Computer Engineering completers reach $149,139, and Mathematics and Computer Science graduates earn $137,218.
An estimated 39.0% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure derived from the university's program mix rather than observed enrollment. Because four-year earnings figures capture only those working and not enrolled, the median earnings understate the eventual earnings of the sizable share of completers who pursue advanced degrees.
Earnings by field
Among University of California-San Diego programs with a reported four-year earnings value, the highest medians are: Computer Science ($159,487); Computer Engineering ($149,139); Mathematics and Computer Science ($137,218); Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology ($123,320); Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering ($118,150). These are earnings after completion for the covered cohort.
A program median describes the middle reported outcome in that group. It is not a starting-salary offer or a prediction for every graduate, and an earnings comparison does not by itself explain why fields differ.
Compare these results with the subjects you want to study and the program’s reported award count. Awards measure degree output, not the number of people in the earnings sample.
The highest-earning programs at University of California-San Diego are concentrated in computing and engineering. Computer Science graduates earn a median of $159,487 four years after completion, with 591 degrees awarded.
Azimuth ranks the program #20 nationally within its field. Computer Engineering follows at $149,139, from a smaller cohort of 167 degrees awarded.
Mathematics and Computer Science sits between them in scale, with 269 degrees awarded and median earnings of $137,218; Azimuth ranks it #3 nationally within its field. The largest program, Cognitive Science, awards 759 degrees a year and reports median earnings of $81,160.
That is well below the computing fields but at the national median for its field, and Azimuth ranks it #7 nationally. A student choosing by department alone would miss the earnings spread between the most popular program and the best-paid ones.
Azimuth ranks 46 bachelor's programs at University of California-San Diego, and earnings data covers 46 fields. The largest program, Cognitive Science, awarded 759 degrees and holds a national rank of #7, with graduates earning a median of $81,160 four years after completion.
Computer Science follows with 591 degrees awarded, a national rank of #20, and median earnings of $159,487. Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology is ranked #1 nationally and first in California, with 71 degrees awarded and median earnings of $123,320.
English Language and Literature/Letters ranks #1 nationally and #1 in California, awarding 62 degrees and posting median earnings of $57,900.
Do UC San Diego graduates earn more than expected?
University of California-San Diego reports median earnings of $83,130 four years after completion. The reported value is $24,112 above Azimuth’s statistical expectation for the institution.
The difference compares the reported outcome with a model estimate. It does not compare matched students who attended different colleges, and it does not establish how much the institution caused earnings to change.
Read this measure alongside completion and individual program outcomes. It describes an institution-level result; it does not predict what a particular student will earn.
Read the original article: A value-added approach to college outcomes
- Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
- +$9,785
- Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
- +$14,327
- Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
- +$24,112
These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.
Further analysis
Earnings scenarios grounded in the program mix show a downside of $56,810, a typical outcome of $83,130, and an upside of $128,687. Anchoring the range in named programs, Computer Science reaches $159,487 at the high end, while Political Science, the lowest-earning among the largest programs, sits at $67,713.
At University of California-San Diego, federally aided graduates who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $83,130 four years after completing a degree. Azimuth places that figure in the 91st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, based on an earnings cohort of 6,326 completers.
Earnings scenarios estimated from the university's program mix put typical earnings at $83,130, with a downside scenario of $56,810 and an upside scenario of $128,687. An estimated 39.0% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.
Graduates earn about $24,112 more than the model expects for similar students. That places the gap at the 98th percentile.
Data & methodology
A missing figure does not mean zero. 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.
Four-year earnings are measured after completion for the covered federally aided cohort of people working and not enrolled. Measures taken six, eight or ten years after entry use a different starting point and should not be treated as one graduating class followed over time.
Program award counts describe credentials awarded, not current enrollment, unique graduates or earnings-sample size. Reporting periods differ across measures; the shared field definitions do not establish the exact vintage of every school-level value.
College Scorecard data and documentation · Model methodology