Career outcomes brief
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Career Outcomes & Earnings
How much do Michigan graduates earn?
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor reports median earnings of $96,159 four years after completion. Its lower and higher planning estimates are $59,727 and $153,559.
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
- $59,727
- Median · reported
- $96,159
- Higher estimate
- $153,559
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.
Azimuth ranks University of Michigan-Ann Arbor #22 for return on investment among nonprofit four-year institutions. That places the in the 99th percentile.
Graduates earn about $21,484 more than expects for similar students, a result in the 97th percentile nationally. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $14,303.
The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain adds $7,181. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $5,720.
The median earnings four years after completion reach $96,159, in the 96th percentile. That figure runs above the peer median of $65,610 by $30,549 among comparable institutions (same type and size).
The spread between the downside and upside earnings scenarios is substantial, with the upside scenario reaching $153,559. This range reflects the university's mix of programs.
For instance, graduates of Computer and Information Sciences, the largest program with 1,070 degrees awarded, earn a median of $172,904 four years after completion. In Research and Experimental Psychology, the second-largest program, the median is $67,537.
An estimated 33.0% 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 Michigan-Ann Arbor programs with a reported four-year earnings value, the highest medians are: Computer and Information Sciences, General ($172,904); Business Administration, Management and Operations ($144,654); Computer Engineering ($142,071); Information Science/Studies ($130,798); Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other ($128,291). 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.
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor fields 53 nationally ranked bachelor's programs, and the earnings spread across them is wide. Computer and Information Sciences leads in scale: 1,070 degrees awarded and a median of $172,904 four years after completion, good for an Azimuth national rank of #5 in the field.
Business Administration and Management ranks #2 nationally alongside 598 degrees awarded and median earnings of $144,654. Economics, with 618 degrees awarded, shows a median of $110,552 four years after completion and an Azimuth national rank of #32.
By contrast, Research and Experimental Psychology—the second-largest program with 714 degrees awarded—reports a more moderate median of $67,537, though it still ranks #8 nationally.
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor has 53 nationally ranked bachelor's programs, and its largest fields show earnings well above national benchmarks. Computer and Information Sciences awarded 1,070 degrees and shows a median of $172,904 four years after completion, ranking #5 nationally and #1 in Michigan.
Economics awarded 618 degrees, with a median of $110,552 and a national rank of #32. Business Administration and Management follows with 598 degrees awarded, a median of $144,654, and a national rank of #2.
Mechanical Engineering rounds out the largest programs with 275 degrees awarded, a median of $105,888, and a national rank of #15.
Do Michigan graduates earn more than expected?
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor reports median earnings of $96,159 four years after completion. The reported value is $21,484 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.
- +$14,303
- Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
- +$7,181
- Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
- +$21,484
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 university's program mix show a downside of $59,727, a typical outcome of $96,159, and an upside of $153,559. The spread shows how field choice shapes earnings: among the largest programs, Computer and Information Sciences reaches $172,904 at the high end, while Research and Experimental Psychology sits at $67,537.
At University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, the median earnings for federally aided graduates four years after completion reach $96,159. That figure, drawn from a cohort of 7,695 completers, sits in the 96th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.
Graduates earn about $21,484 more than the model expects for similar students. The gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students places the university at the 97th percentile.
Earnings scenarios based on the program mix show a wide range: a downside scenario of $59,727, typical earnings of $96,159, and an upside scenario of $153,559. An estimated 33.0% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix.
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.
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