MASTER'S DEGREE · NATIONAL DEGREE OUTCOMES
Is a master's degree in Architecture worth it?
Compare cost, debt and earnings across 51 college programs with reportable data.
Personal baseline needed
$73,496 in median year-4 earnings
A credible return for this credential must start with what the student would otherwise earn. The federal data does not provide that personal baseline.
$73,496Median year-4 earnings
$19,858Average institution net-price context
Not availableMedian federal debt
Start with your decision
What do you need to compare?
Outcomes at a glance
$73,496Typical earnings four years after completion
$72,761Average earnings five years after completion
Not availableTypical federal student debt
44thEarnings percentile among the same degree level
Not availableDegrees awarded in 2024–25
51College programs reporting earnings
Degree counts come from the IPEDS Fall 2025 provisional release and cover 1 matched college records. Colleges without a match are not estimated.
Four useful answers about Architecture
How much do Architecture master's degree graduates earn?
The national median is $73,496 four years after completion across reportable master's degree programs in this federal field.
How much federal debt do graduates have?
A national median federal-debt figure is not reportable for this degree in the current release.
Does the college matter for Architecture?
Yes. The middle half of reporting programs ranges from $69,700 to $78,226 in observed year-4 earnings.
What careers are related to Architecture?
DegreeVerdict links this field to 4 displayed occupations using the official federal CIP–SOC crosswalk. Occupational wages are career context, not graduate salary promises.
More schooling changes both the cost and the outcome.
Compare the same field at each degree level with reportable data. These are separate groups of graduates, so the differences do not prove that an additional degree caused higher earnings.
OPEN PROFILE
Associate's Degree
- Year-4 earnings
- $36,438
- Federal debt
- Not available
- Programs in the comparison
- 1
Bachelor's Degree
- Year-4 earnings
- $67,399
- Federal debt
- $27,000
- Programs in the comparison
- 82
Master's Degree
- Year-4 earnings
- $73,496
- Federal debt
- Not available
- Programs in the comparison
- 51
First Professional Degree
- Year-4 earnings
- $77,290
- Federal debt
- Not available
- Programs in the comparison
- 3
Where the middle half of programs lands
Year‑4 earnings differ by college. This band shows the 25th percentile, national median and 75th percentile among reporting programs.
Median
25th percentile$69,700National median$73,49675th percentile$78,226
51 programs report year‑4 earnings.BEFORE YOU CHOOSE
Compare price, debt and earnings together
SHORTLIST BY QUESTION
Three useful places to start
Each choice answers a different question. These are observed signals, not an overall winner.
PRICE × EARNINGS MAP
Where colleges sit for this exact degree
Move left for a lower annual college-wide net price and up for higher observed year-4 earnings.
$83,978Observed year-4 earnings$71,894
University of Florida$6,541 price · $88,820 earningsVirginia Polytechnic Institute and State University$24,953 price · $84,023 earningsUniversity of Utah$16,200 price · $83,978 earningsBoston Architectural College$25,865 price · $83,817 earningsCornell University$28,690 price · $83,284 earningsOhio State University-Main Campus$17,339 price · $82,952 earningsUniversity of Notre Dame$26,780 price · $82,270 earningsCalifornia Baptist University$26,285 price · $81,768 earningsUniversity of Houston$14,276 price · $80,510 earningsThe University of Texas at Austin$19,857 price · $79,350 earningsTexas A&M University-College Station$21,315 price · $78,997 earningsUniversity of California, Los Angeles$12,548 price · $78,757 earningsSouthern California Institute of Architecture$43,923 price · $78,626 earningsUniversity of Maryland-College Park$15,678 price · $78,226 earningsSouthern Illinois University-Carbondale$13,297 price · $78,062 earningsUniversity of Washington-Seattle Campus$14,091 price · $77,526 earningsClemson University$22,253 price · $76,905 earningsUniversity of Hartford$30,282 price · $76,853 earningsUniversity of Cincinnati-Main Campus$25,648 price · $76,450 earningsRoger Williams University$37,999 price · $75,242 earningsTexas Tech University$19,070 price · $74,979 earningsUniversity of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus$11,900 price · $74,820 earningsSchool of the Art Institute of Chicago$49,790 price · $74,629 earningsThe University of Texas at Arlington$13,951 price · $74,622 earningsWentworth Institute of Technology$34,170 price · $74,049 earningsFlorida Agricultural and Mechanical University$13,739 price · $73,496 earningsTulane University of Louisiana$39,949 price · $72,973 earningsUniversity of Minnesota-Twin Cities$16,778 price · $72,487 earningsKent State University at Kent$20,787 price · $71,894 earningsMontana State University$22,499 price · $71,784 earnings
$11,900Annual college-wide average net price$39,949
Choose colleges offering this exact degree
Start with the highest-earning reported programs below, or open the full directory to search every college.
30 shortlist matchesSelect up to four · 25 shown
Search every reporting program →
See the spread, not just the national number.
1University of Florida$88,8202Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University$84,0233University of Utah$83,9784Boston Architectural College$83,8175Cornell University$83,2846Ohio State University-Main Campus$82,9527University of Notre Dame$82,2708California Baptist University$81,7689University of Houston$80,51010The University of Texas at Austin$79,350Observed year-4 earnings · top displayed records are not a universal ranking
Jobs this degree may lead to
Federal education-to-career links identify related occupations. They do not imply that every graduate enters the same job.
Pay and projected demand
Related careers do not share one outlook
Bubble size = annual openings2025–35 national projection
Higher median wage ↑
-7%Projected employment growth →12%
Occupation wages describe workers in these jobs, not graduates of this degree. BLS projections are national estimates and do not guarantee hiring.
Architecture Teachers, Postsecondary$96,870 median wage7,700 jobs nationwide+2.6% projected growth through 2035 · 700 openings a yearTypical entry education: Doctoral or professional degree$58,430–$159,030 typical wage rangeArchitectural and Engineering Managers$171,270 median wage220,260 jobs nationwide+5.5% projected growth through 2035 · 14,900 openings a yearTypical entry education: Bachelor's degree$120,810–$262,760 typical wage rangeArchitects, Except Landscape and Naval$99,280 median wage106,770 jobs nationwide+4.3% projected growth through 2035 · 6,900 openings a yearTypical entry education: Bachelor's degree$62,300–$161,420 typical wage rangeNO MATCHUnreported jobs nationwide
BLS May 2025 wages and 2025–35 projections. Career figures describe occupations, not graduates of a specific college.
Where this degree has enough data to compare
State pages are published only when at least five operating colleges report year-4 earnings for this exact field and credential.
This page keeps the field and credential level fixed. Federal categories can still combine multiple catalog programs or concentrations. Automated ROI is limited to associate and bachelor’s degrees because institution-wide annual net price is not a reliable proxy for short certificate prices. ROI is an illustrative scenario, not a federal determination.