Youngstown State University Outcomes: $56K Earnings (2026)

How much do Youngstown State University graduates earn?

The reported median is $56,047 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $57,301 as its benchmark; the difference is -$1,254 per year.

Graduates of Youngstown State University earn about $1,093 more than expects for similar students, a result in the 59th percentile. The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $4,545.

The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $3,452. Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $926.

Four years after completion, completers earn a median of $56,047, which lands in the 36th percentile nationally. That figure is below the peer median of $57,301 among comparable institutions (same type and size) by $1,254.

Azimuth places the return in the 44th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The return picture is mixed: graduates beat the model's expectation, but the median sits just below the peer benchmark.

The earnings scenarios show a wide spread: the downside scenario is $42,057, the typical scenario is $56,047, and the upside scenario reaches $80,351. These are estimates from the program mix, not observed groups of graduates.

The highest-earning programs are in engineering and technology. Electrical Engineering graduates earn a median of $90,539 four years after completion, and Chemical Engineering graduates earn $89,150.

Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians graduates earn $86,361, which is above the national median for the field.

An estimated 27.3% 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.

Median earnings · four years after completion: $56,047
Rank for difference from expectations: 59th percentile

Four-year median earnings against two benchmarks

Youngstown State University reported median: $56,047
Peer schools comparable schools · $1,254 above Youngstown State University: $57,301
Model expectation what similar students would be expected to earn · $1,093 below Youngstown State University: $54,954

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?

Earnings four years after completion

Planning rangeReported median

Lower estimate: $42,057
Median · reported: $56,047
Higher estimate: $80,351

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 Youngstown State University 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.

Youngstown State University graduates’ reported earnings are $1,093 above that expectation, the 59th 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 Youngstown State University caused a student to earn. Read how expected earnings are estimated.

Which fields at Youngstown State University report the highest earnings?

The highest-earning programs at Youngstown State University are concentrated in engineering. Electrical Engineering leads at $90,539 four years after completion, with 27 degrees awarded.

Chemical Engineering follows at $89,150 (38 degrees awarded), and Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians reaches $86,361 on 10 degrees awarded. Among the largest programs, the spread is wide.

Nursing, the biggest by degrees awarded, shows a median of $77,576. Liberal Arts and General Studies, with 105 degrees awarded, sits at $46,399.

That gap illustrates the range of earnings across different fields at the university.

Nursing is the largest bachelor's program at Youngstown State University, with 151 degrees awarded and a median of $77,576 four years after completion. Criminal Justice follows with 129 degrees awarded and a median of $52,574.

Liberal Arts and General Studies awarded 105 degrees and shows a median of $46,399 four years after completion. The highest-earning programs include Electrical Engineering, where completers earn a median of $90,539 four years after completion with 27 degrees awarded.

Chemical Engineering follows at $89,150 four years after completion with 38 degrees awarded. Computer Science also records a median of $85,028 four years after completion with 35 degrees awarded.

The three largest program families are Business (16.8% of degrees awarded), Health Professions (15.0%), and Engineering (9.6%).

Further analysis

Earnings at Youngstown State University vary considerably by field, a spread captured in three earnings scenarios grounded in the university's program mix. The downside earnings scenario sits at $42,057, the typical scenario at $56,047, and the upside scenario reaches $80,351.

Among the largest programs, Nursing graduates earn a median of $77,576 four years after completion, while Liberal Arts and General Studies sits at $46,399.

Four years after completing a bachelor's degree at Youngstown State University, the median earnings of the 2,233 federally aided completers in the cohort sit at $56,047. That figure is below the peer median of $57,301 for comparable institutions (same type and size).

Graduates earn about $1,093 more than the model expects for similar students, a result that places the university in the 59th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. Earnings scenarios, which reflect the university's program mix, show a typical outcome of $56,047, with a downside scenario of $42,057 and an upside scenario reaching $80,351.

An estimated 27.3% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure estimated from the program mix. The combination of earnings that modestly exceed expectations alongside a wide modeled scenario range means that program choice matters a great deal here.

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.