1.  [College research](/)
2.  /
3.  [University of Colorado Boulder](/school/university-of-colorado-boulder/)
4.  /
5.  Career outcomes brief

Career outcomes brief

Copy linkPrint brief

# University of Colorado Boulder Career Outcomes & Earnings

Updated September 30, 2026

[Overview](/school/university-of-colorado-boulder/)[Cost & aid](/school/university-of-colorado-boulder/cost/)Outcomes[Admissions](/school/university-of-colorado-boulder/admissions/)[Majors](/school/university-of-colorado-boulder/majors/)[Similar schools](/school/university-of-colorado-boulder/similar/)

**On this page**+

## How much do CU Boulder graduates earn?

The reported median is $76,850 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $65,610 as its benchmark; the difference is $11,240 per year.

The return picture combines above-peer earnings with a positive modeled gap from expectations. Azimuth places University of Colorado Boulder in the 84th percentile for return among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $5,558 more than the model expects for similar students. That is [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, and it sits in the 72nd percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $13,488. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $7,930.

Median earnings four years after completion were $76,850, in the 85th percentile. That was $11,240 above the peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), of $65,610.

Earnings vary considerably by field, so the school-level median does not describe every graduate path. Earnings scenarios range from a downside of $53,434 to an upside of $102,508, representing lower- and higher-earning program clusters rather than observed groups.

Among the higher-earning fields, Computer Science completers had median earnings of $121,952 four years after completion, Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering completers had $116,350, and Electrical Engineering completers had $100,631. The modeled range and these field results show why program choice matters within the university.

Graduate study is part of the context for reading earnings here. An estimated 33.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from program mix rather than observed enrollment.

Since four-year earnings include completers who are working and not enrolled, that estimate means the earnings figure does not represent those continuing their education.

**Median earnings · four years after completion**
$76,850

**Rank for difference from expectations**
72nd percentile

Four-year median earnings against two benchmarks

**CU Boulder reported median**
$76,850

**Peer schools comparable schools · $11,240 below CU Boulder**
$65,610

**Model expectation what similar students would be expected to earn · $5,558 below CU Boulder**
$71,292

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 $53,434 to $102,508, around the reported median of $76,850. Compare the lower scenario with [CU Boulder borrowing and monthly payments](/school/university-of-colorado-boulder/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**
$53,434

**Median · reported**
$76,850

**Higher estimate**
$102,508

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 CU Boulder 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).

CU Boulder graduates’ reported earnings are $5,558 above that expectation, the 72nd 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 CU Boulder 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.**
+$13,488

**Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.**
\-$7,930

**Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.**
+$5,558

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

## Which fields at CU Boulder report the highest earnings?

Program choice makes a wide difference in earnings at University of Colorado Boulder, from engineering and computing to design and biology. Computer Science has median earnings of $121,952 four years after completion and 473 degrees awarded; [Azimuth ranks](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/) it #52 nationally in its field.

Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering reports $116,350 in median earnings, with 199 degrees awarded, and Azimuth ranks it #2 nationally in its field. Environmental Design sits at a more moderate $61,788 in median earnings four years after completion, alongside 150 degrees awarded; Azimuth ranks it #2 nationally in its field.

Physiology, Pathology and Related Sciences records $71,444 and 310 degrees awarded, with an Azimuth national field rank of #4. The higher- and moderate-earning fields show that the earnings picture varies by program.

University of Colorado Boulder has 36 nationally ranked bachelor's programs, and the best of them sit in engineering and the sciences. Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering and Environmental Design both hold a #2 [Azimuth rank](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/) in their fields, and Astronomy and Astrophysics is #2 in its field.

The largest program is Business Administration and Management, at 1,087 degrees awarded a year. Azimuth ranks it #30 nationally, and graduates earn a median of $86,441 four years after completion.

The highest earnings belong to Computer Science, at $121,952 from 473 degrees awarded. Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering follows at $116,350 with 199 degrees awarded, and Azimuth ranks it #2 in its field.

A student drawn to the largest programs should know that the best-paid ones are not the largest.

Highest reported four-year program earnings

**Computer Science**
$121,952

**Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical/Space Engineering**
$116,350

**Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering**
$100,631

**Chemical Engineering**
$95,780

**Civil Engineering**
$94,960

**Mechanical Engineering**
$93,073

**Mathematics**
$90,635

**Architectural Engineering**
$89,797

[Explore CU Boulder program cohorts and field ranks](/school/university-of-colorado-boulder/majors/#largest-cohorts) for more context.

## Further analysis

Program mix gives this return picture a wide field-to-field range. Earnings scenarios place the downside at $53,434, the typical outcome at $76,850, and the upside at $102,508.

Among the largest programs, Computer Science had median earnings of $121,952 four years after completion, compared with $56,867 for Psychology. The spread shows why a schoolwide figure cannot describe every field.

University of Colorado Boulder posts a comparatively high school-level earnings measure: federally aided completers who were working and not enrolled had median earnings of $76,850 four years after completion. That median falls in the 85th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions, based on an earnings cohort of 3,566 completers.

[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, also favors the university. Graduates earn about $5,558 more than the model expects for similar students.

The earnings percentile and the model result point in the same direction for this broad graduate group. Earnings scenarios based on the program mix range from $53,434 in the downside scenario to $102,508 in the upside scenario; the typical scenario aligns with the reported median.

An estimated 33.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix rather than observed enrollment.

## 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/).