Average Starting Salary With Bachelors Degrees

Q: I just got the annual Georgia Tech info brocure in the mail, and as usual, they included their yearly average starting salaries with a bachelor's degree. Here are some of the more interesting ones: Computer Science-48,500 Computer Engineering-47,800 Electrical Engineering-45,500 Chemical Engineering-46,800 Nuclear Engineering-47,700 Public Policy*-44,500 Aerospace Engineering-42,800 Mechanical Engineering-43,900 Mathematics-39,200 Physics-38,100 Management-36,800 Biology-31,300 Chemistry-32,300 History,Technology,& Society-33,500 These numbers are very high. The high Public Policy number (44,500) was higher than some of the engineering degrees, which is very strange (especially considering the college is Georgia Tech). Now here is my question- does anyone have any idea of how these numbers (particularly computer science, computer engineering, and electrical engineering) compare with some of the other big universities? Are these numbers good at all?

A: -These numbers are about average. Maybe a tad below some other top schools, because of the university's location, but certainly in the mix salary wise. -Watch out for these surveys. They are based on self-reporting and may have a fairly low return rate (Cornell's was 17%). Since the students with the most to brag about (or at least the happiest students) are more likely to respond, these surveys are usually weighted on the high side. -And make sure you adjust for cost-of-living (rent, groceries, a night out, state/local taxes). Public Policy in New York or D.C. could be more expensive than Engineering in Georgia or Alabama. You can look at it as take home pay, or look at it as consuming comparable goods in different cities. Look at the geographical distribution if there is one and assume the Coasts will be more than the Heartlands. You can use the salary calculators on the web, but most of those assume that people will be buying houses. One calculator is good that allows you to adjust for rent, http://www2.homefair.com/calc/salcalc.html

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