1.  [College research](/)
2.  /
3.  [University of Wisconsin-Madison](/school/university-of-wisconsin-madison/)
4.  /
5.  Programs & majors brief

Programs & majors brief

Copy linkPrint brief

# University of Wisconsin-Madison Majors & Programs

Updated October 1, 2026

[Overview](/school/university-of-wisconsin-madison/)[Cost & aid](/school/university-of-wisconsin-madison/cost/)[Outcomes](/school/university-of-wisconsin-madison/outcomes/)[Admissions](/school/university-of-wisconsin-madison/admissions/)Majors[Similar schools](/school/university-of-wisconsin-madison/similar/)

**On this page**+

## Which majors earn the most at UW-Madison?

[Azimuth ranks](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/) 61 programs at University of Wisconsin-Madison nationally, and the earnings spread across the largest fields is wide. Computer and Information Sciences is the biggest program, with 733 degrees awarded and a median of $119,655 four years after completion, placing it #20 in its field.

Finance follows at $107,207 and ranks #21 nationally on 463 degrees awarded. Further down the earnings scale, Economics reports a median of $85,366 and an Azimuth national rank of #69 with 546 degrees awarded, while Psychology reaches $58,901 and ranks #43 on 495 degrees awarded.

The contrast between the highest- and moderate-earning fields reflects the mix of technical and social-science programs that define the university's degree portfolio.

### 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.

-   Business**1,669 · 17.1%**
-   Biological sciences**1,193 · 12.3%**
-   Social sciences**1,077 · 11.1%**
-   Engineering**995 · 10.2%**
-   Computer science**733 · 7.5%**
-   Other**4,066 · 41.8%**

Find a field

Sort programsLargest programsHighest four-year earningsBest national field rankProgram name

92 of 92 programs shown

Four-year earnings · first six matching programs

**Real Estate 186 degrees awarded**
$120,483

**Computer Engineering 115 degrees awarded**
$120,068

**Computer and Information Sciences, General 733 degrees awarded**
$119,655

**Industrial Engineering 118 degrees awarded**
$110,711

**Finance and Financial Management Services 463 degrees awarded**
$107,207

**International Business 35 degrees awarded**
$106,783

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

| Program | Degrees awarded | 4-yr earnings | Field rank |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Real Estate | 186 | $120,483 | #2 |
| Computer Engineering | 115 | $120,068 | — |
| Computer and Information Sciences, General | 733 | $119,655 | #20 |
| Industrial Engineering | 118 | $110,711 | #9 |
| Finance and Financial Management Services | 463 | $107,207 | #21 |
| International Business | 35 | $106,783 | — |
| Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods | 69 | $106,521 | #19 |
| Insurance | 144 | $105,992 | #1 |
| Nuclear Engineering small degree count | 15 | $102,449 | — |
| Chemical Engineering | 103 | $101,676 | #38 |
| Mathematics | 226 | $101,438 | #19 |
| Accounting and Related Services | 119 | $101,390 | #28 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | 222 | $100,005 | #26 |
| Biomedical/Medical Engineering | 106 | $99,762 | #26 |
| Statistics | 132 | $99,210 | #18 |
| Marketing | 248 | $96,148 | #8 |
| Mechanical Engineering | 183 | $95,114 | #61 |
| Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering | 100 | $95,059 | #121 |
| Engineering Mechanics | 33 | $92,276 | #2 |
| Materials Engineering | 47 | $91,265 | #10 |
| Civil Engineering | 98 | $87,691 | #66 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | 244 | $85,579 | #177 |
| Food Science and Technology | 24 | $85,445 | — |
| Economics | 546 | $85,366 | #69 |
| General Sales, Merchandising and Related Marketing Operations | 143 | $82,081 | #4 |
| Agricultural Business and Management | 30 | $81,655 | #6 |
| Agricultural Engineering | 59 | $78,368 | #19 |
| Physics | 46 | $77,380 | #44 |
| Journalism | 196 | $75,967 | #4 |
| Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness | 186 | $74,963 | #9 |
| Geological/Geophysical Engineering small degree count | 13 | $73,337 | — |
| Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology | 189 | $72,988 | #17 |
| Agricultural Public Services | 61 | $71,726 | #2 |
| Non-Professional Legal Studies | 113 | $70,123 | #5 |
| Biology, General | 389 | $69,005 | #41 |
| Genetics | 104 | $68,402 | #3 |
| Microbiological Sciences and Immunology | 74 | $68,397 | #15 |
| Political Science and Government | 348 | $66,148 | #73 |
| Design and Applied Arts | 31 | $65,874 | #33 |
| Chemistry | 66 | $64,734 | #74 |
| Landscape Architecture small degree count | 9 | $63,759 | — |
| International/Globalization Studies | 98 | $63,452 | #16 |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions | 48 | $63,061 | #11 |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and Services | 94 | $61,737 | #52 |
| Communication and Media Studies | 247 | $61,270 | #63 |
| Philosophy | 69 | $61,186 | #21 |
| Geography and Cartography | 40 | $59,424 | #35 |
| Nutrition Sciences | 59 | $59,329 | #21 |
| Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services | 136 | $59,044 | #12 |
| Psychology, General | 495 | $58,901 | #43 |
| Neurobiology and Neurosciences | 293 | $58,824 | #26 |
| Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences | 26 | $58,771 | #59 |
| Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics | 141 | $58,565 | #30 |
| History | 119 | $58,343 | #49 |
| Sociology | 105 | $58,007 | #67 |
| Animal Sciences | 46 | $57,605 | #8 |
| Area Studies | 34 | $55,733 | #23 |
| Anthropology | 38 | $54,773 | #22 |
| Social Work | 71 | $54,375 | #73 |
| English Language and Literature, General | 102 | $53,197 | #94 |
| Natural Resources Conservation and Research | 161 | $52,631 | #85 |
| Botany/Plant Biology small degree count | 9 | $50,963 | — |
| Special Education and Teaching | 23 | $50,302 | #54 |
| Zoology/Animal Biology | 50 | $50,080 | #6 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods | 76 | $49,640 | #118 |
| Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology | 64 | $49,602 | #23 |
| Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies | 44 | $48,934 | #46 |
| Fine and Studio Arts | 72 | $48,684 | #36 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas small degree count | 18 | $48,435 | — |
| Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management | 22 | $45,212 | — |
| Plant Sciences small degree count | 13 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Forestry small degree count | 6 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education | 47 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Engineering Physics small degree count | 5 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| East Asian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics | 32 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and Services small degree count | 16 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Slavic, Baltic and Albanian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics small degree count | 13 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Germanic Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics small degree count | 12 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Classics and Classical Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics small degree count | 11 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Apparel and Textiles | 33 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Pharmacology and Toxicology | 21 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Applied Mathematics | 25 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Data Science | 112 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Sustainability Studies | 33 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Religion/Religious Studies small degree count | 10 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Astronomy and Astrophysics | 20 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology small degree count | 9 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Music | 42 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft small degree count | 18 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Dance small degree count | 13 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration | 36 | Too few graduates to report | — |
| Management Information Systems and Services | 40 | Too few graduates to report | — |

[Program data and definitions](#page-sources) · [How to evaluate program rankings](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/)

## What are the largest programs at UW-Madison?

Ten largest programs by degrees awarded

**Computer and Information Sciences, General**
733

**Economics**
546

**Psychology, General**
495

**Finance and Financial Management Services**
463

**Biology, General**
389

**Political Science and Government**
348

**Neurobiology and Neurosciences**
293

**Marketing**
248

**Communication and Media Studies**
247

**Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing**
244

Counts describe degrees awarded in the reporting period, not current enrollment. [Program data and definitions](#page-sources)

## How do UW-Madison majors rank nationally?

### National program rankings

1.  Insurance**#1**
2.  Agricultural Public Services**#2**
3.  Engineering Mechanics**#2**
4.  Real Estate**#2**
5.  Genetics**#3**
6.  Journalism**#4**
7.  General Sales, Merchandising and Related Marketing Operations**#4**
8.  Non-Professional Legal Studies**#5**
9.  Agricultural Business and Management**#6**
10.  Zoology/Animal Biology**#6**
11.  Animal Sciences**#8**
12.  Marketing**#8**
13.  Industrial Engineering**#9**
14.  Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness**#9**
15.  Materials Engineering**#10**
16.  Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions**#11**
17.  Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services**#12**
18.  Microbiological Sciences and Immunology**#15**
19.  International/Globalization Studies**#16**
20.  Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology**#17**
21.  Statistics**#18**
22.  Agricultural Engineering**#19**
23.  Mathematics**#19**
24.  Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods**#19**
25.  Computer and Information Sciences, General**#20**
26.  Nutrition Sciences**#21**
27.  Philosophy**#21**
28.  Finance and Financial Management Services**#21**
29.  Anthropology**#22**
30.  Area Studies**#23**
31.  Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology**#23**
32.  Biomedical/Medical Engineering**#26**
33.  Neurobiology and Neurosciences**#26**
34.  Business Administration, Management and Operations**#26**
35.  Accounting and Related Services**#28**
36.  Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics**#30**
37.  Design and Applied Arts**#33**
38.  Geography and Cartography**#35**
39.  Fine and Studio Arts**#36**
40.  Chemical Engineering**#38**
41.  Biology, General**#41**
42.  Psychology, General**#43**
43.  Physics**#44**
44.  Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies**#46**
45.  History**#49**

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](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/)

## Further analysis

Outcomes at University of Wisconsin-Madison vary sharply by field, and [Azimuth's program ranking](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/)s evaluate four-year earnings among federally aided completers, median debt, and cohort size rather than reputation. The university has 70 programs with published earnings data, of which 61 carry an Azimuth national rank.

The three largest program families are Business, at 17.2% of bachelor's degrees awarded, Biological Sciences at 12.3%, and Social Sciences at 11.1%. The largest single program, Computer and Information Sciences, awards 733 degrees a year and its completers earn a median of $119,655 four years after completion.

That places it #20 nationally and #1 in Wisconsin. The highest-ranked program is Insurance, at #1 nationally with median earnings of $105,992.

Business Administration and Management has a benchmark of 1.47x, meaning its completers earn well above the national median for the field, and Azimuth ranks it #26.

## 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/).