College Azimuth

Career outcomes brief

University of Nevada-Reno Career Outcomes & Earnings

Updated

How much do UNR graduates earn?

The reported median is $67,498 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $65,610 as its benchmark; the difference is $1,888 per year.

For graduates, and peer figures offer a favorable return picture. Graduates earn about $4,126 more than the model expects for similar students.

Among nonprofit four-year institutions, that earnings-beyond-expectations result—the gap between what graduates earn and what the model expects for similar students—is in the 69th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $10,686.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $6,560. Azimuth places the return for University of Nevada-Reno in the 70th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Federally aided completers who are working and not enrolled have median earnings of $67,498 four years after completion, in the 71st percentile. The peer median, the middle value for comparable institutions (same type and size), is $65,610, with university earnings $1,888 above it. The model result and peer comparison point in the same direction.

The modeled earnings range is broad at University of Nevada-Reno, reflecting its program mix. The downside scenario is $50,820, and the upside scenario is $85,437; both are earnings scenarios rather than observed graduate groups.

Four years after completion, Nursing has median earnings of $97,949, Electrical Engineering has $96,291, and Accounting has $85,943. These selected program medians meet or exceed the upside scenario, showing how field-level results can extend beyond the modeled range.

Four-year earnings should be read with further study in mind. An estimated 30.9% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix rather than observed enrollment.

Since the earnings measure covers completers who are working and not enrolled, those continuing their education are outside that snapshot.

Median earnings · four years after completion
$67,498
Rank for difference from expectations
69th percentile
Four-year median earnings against two benchmarks
UNR reported median
$67,498
Peer schools comparable schools · $1,888 below UNR
$65,610
Model expectation what similar students would be expected to earn · $4,126 below UNR
$63,372

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.

How could earnings differ from the median?

The planning scenarios range from $50,820 to $85,437, around the reported median of $67,498. Compare the lower scenario with UNR borrowing and monthly payments 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
$50,820
Median · reported
$67,498
Higher estimate
$85,437

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 explores the risk hidden by medians, using older ten-year entrant data. Read about the move to four-year earnings.

Do UNR 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.

UNR graduates’ reported earnings are $4,126 above that expectation, the 69th 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 UNR caused a student to earn. Read how expected earnings are estimated.

What explains value-added earnings?
Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.
+$10,686
Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.
-$6,560
Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.
+$4,126

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

Which fields at UNR report the highest earnings?

The largest programs at University of Nevada-Reno show a wide earnings spread four years after completion. Nursing leads the group with 168 degrees awarded and median earnings of $97,949; Azimuth ranks it #81 nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions in its field.

Business/Commerce follows with 158 degrees awarded and median earnings of $68,419, placing it #20 nationally. Psychology, the largest program with published earnings on campus at 223 degrees awarded, reports median earnings of $51,553 and ranks #152 nationally.

Marketing sits between the two ends, with 174 degrees awarded, median earnings of $67,914, and a national rank of #87. The contrast between Nursing and Psychology shows that program choice here carries a substantial earnings difference.

University of Nevada-Reno has 35 nationally ranked bachelor's programs, with earnings data available for 40 fields. The largest program with published earnings, Psychology, awarded 223 degrees in the most recent year.

Azimuth ranks it #152 within its field, with median earnings of $51,553 four years after completion. Nursing is both a large program at 168 degrees awarded and the highest-earning, with a median of $97,949 and a national rank of #81.

The best nationally ranked program is Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management, which Azimuth places #9 in its field. It awarded 34 degrees, with median earnings of $46,171 four years after completion.

Social Work follows at #14 nationally with 112 degrees awarded and median earnings of $60,320, while Business/Commerce ranks #20 and awarded 158 degrees, with median earnings of $68,419.

Highest reported four-year program earnings
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing
$97,949
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering
$96,291
Mechanical Engineering
$88,460
Accounting and Related Services
$85,943
Chemical Engineering
$84,965
Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering
$83,233
Civil Engineering
$81,201
Geological/Geophysical Engineering
$78,079

Explore UNR program cohorts and field ranks for more context.

Further analysis

Field choice shapes the modeled earnings range. Scenarios grounded in the program mix put the downside at $50,820, the typical outcome at $67,498, and the upside at $85,437.

Nursing anchors the high end at $97,949 four years after completion, while Psychology, the lowest-earning large program, is at $51,553. The spread shows substantial variation by field.

Four years after completing a degree, graduates of University of Nevada-Reno earn a median of $67,498, based on a cohort of 3,937 completers. That is $1,888 above the median for comparable institutions (same type and size), and Azimuth places it in the 71st percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

Graduates earn about $4,126 more than the model expects for similar students. The gap sits at the 69th percentile.

Earnings scenarios, estimated from the university's program mix, give a sense of the range. The typical earnings scenario is $67,498, with a downside of $50,820 and an upside of $85,437.

An estimated 30.9% 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.