and the weekly earnings below (multiply by 52 to get annual earnings). First big bump in 2008-2010 is the "Great Recession" and second spike in 2020 is the COVID-19 pandemic.
This is a broad "average" degree picture. For finer (more specific) sampling of degree picture (i.e., by degrees in which field), see chapter 2 of the College Board's "Education Pays 2023" report and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York's "Labor Market for Recent College Graduates" website and Georgetown University's Center on Education and the Workforce's "Buyer Beware" website that looks at first-year earnings and debt for 37,000 college majors at 4400 institutions (as of 2020). STEM fields are tops (and still are in 2025). Georgetown also recently published studies in 2025 on the Return on Investment of 4600 colleges and universities and the Bridging the Middle-Skills Gap: Connecting a Diverse Workforce to Economic Opportunity Through Certificates and Associate’s Degrees that give earnings for different majors. See other articles from a web search of "what's it worth college degree". For California community college students: see the "SalarySurfer" website prepared by the CCCCO about the earnings of recent graduates who received a degree in a specific program area at California community colleges. You choose the program (discipline) area, and it will give you potential wages to be earned two years and five years after receiving a certificate or degree in certain disciplines.
Finally, for policymakers and those who fund community colleges: Where Value Meets Values: The Economic Impact of Community Colleges from the Association of American Colleges and Universities with funding from the Lumina Foundation. Community college students earn back $4.80 for every dollar spent on their education and tax payers save $6.80 for every dollar spent. Community colleges are the "best bang for the buck". At Bakersfield College, we're doing a better job at preparing our students for upper division classes than are the four-year universities: there is a more than 20% differential between our students who transfer to four-year schools completing their bachelors than students who start out at the four-year schools. For a systemwide view, see the 2025 UC Accountability Report and the UCOP Transfer Action Team Report.
last updated: August 14, 2025