Free tool · federal data

What does this major pay at different colleges?

Pick a major, a degree level and a state. You get what graduates of each college's program earned four years after graduating and what they borrowed in federal loans, from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard, with the national median for the same program as the yardstick.

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Sociology, bachelor's programs in California

Among 37 California bachelor's programs in Sociology with federal earnings data, University of California, Berkeley graduates earn the highest median, $71,363 four years after graduating, with a median federal debt of $13,000. University of Southern California follows at $70,555. The national median for bachelor's graduates in the same program is $52,657. (2017-19 graduates, measured 2022-23, College Scorecard.)

Programs with data
37
Highest median
$71,363
National median
$52,657
The link opens this exact comparison.
Sociology, bachelor's programs in California: median earnings four years after graduating and median federal debt, in order of earnings.
CollegeMedian earnings, 4 yrs aftervs national medianDebt borrowed at this college (median)
University of California, Berkeley$71,363+36%$13,000
University of Southern California$70,555+34%$9,625
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo$69,883+33%$16,500
Loyola Marymount University$68,053+29%$17,750
National University$64,860+23%$27,687
University of California, Los Angeles$64,692+23%$14,453
California State University-East Bay$62,427+19%$17,757
San Francisco State University$62,385+18%$15,000
University of San Francisco$61,883+18%$24,125
University of California-Santa Barbara$60,013+14%$13,500
Mount Saint Mary's University$59,575+13%$28,915
University of California-Davis$59,171+12%$12,600
California State University-Sacramento$56,886+8%$14,975
California State University-Channel Islands$56,855+8%$14,717
Sonoma State University$56,581+7%$17,000
University of California-Irvine$56,457+7%$15,000
University of California-Riverside$55,682+6%$16,300
University of California-San Diego$55,534+5%$13,000
University of California-Santa Cruz$55,338+5%$15,679
California State University-Dominguez Hills$55,100+5%$14,939
California State University-Northridge$54,500+4%$12,500
California Baptist University$54,060+3%$26,457
San Diego State University$53,387about the same$12,500
California State University-San Marcos$53,287about the same$15,000
California State Polytechnic University-Pomona$52,694about the same$13,000

The 25 highest of 37 programs. Ordered by median earnings four years after graduating: one federal measure, not a ranking of program quality.

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Same major, other degree levels in California: Associate's

The Sociology major guideHow much the college matters, by major

What these numbers are

Earnings: graduates of 2017-18 and 2018-19, earnings measured in 2022 and 2023, in 2024 dollars. Only programs with at least 30 graduates in the earnings cohort are listed, and a multi-state system whose figure pools campuses in several states is left out of state lists. Median earnings of graduates who received federal student aid, worked, and were not enrolled in school; debt is the median federal loans borrowed at this college by graduates who borrowed (Direct Subsidized, Unsubsidized and Grad PLUS; not Parent PLUS, private loans or interest). Programs with too few graduates are suppressed by the Department of Education. Federal program group: Sociology. Earnings reflect who enrolls and where graduates work as well as the program itself.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field-of-study data, 10 June 2026. Download every program (CSV).