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BACHELOR'S DEGREE · NATIONAL DEGREE OUTCOMES

Is a bachelor's degree in Sociology worth it?

Compare cost, debt and earnings across 509 college programs with reportable data.

Based onObserved earnings + college priceEstimate10-year payoff
Estimated 10-year payoff
Negative payoff

−$184,871 over 10 years

National scenario across reporting bachelor's degree programs, using median year-4 earnings, their institutions’ average net prices and a typical 4-year duration.

36.1 yrsTime to earn back the modeled cost
−72%Estimated return after 10 years
$52,094Observed earnings · year 4
Not reachedHighest annual price before payoff reaches $0
Start with your decision

What do you need to compare?

PRICE SENSITIVITY

The price can change the verdict.

Hold observed earnings constant and see how the modeled ten-year payoff changes as annual price rises.

What stays fixed$52,094 observed annual earnings · 4 years of study · $45,000 alternative annual earnings · ten-year horizonThe marked price is the average college-wide net-price context across reporting institutions. This is a sensitivity test, not a tuition quote or earnings forecast.
WHAT THIS DEGREE PAYS

Outcomes at a glance

$52,094Typical earnings four years after completion
$51,385Average earnings five years after completion
$25,000Typical federal student debt
27thEarnings percentile among the same degree level
36Degrees awarded in 2024–25
465College programs reporting earnings

Degree counts come from the IPEDS Fall 2025 provisional release and cover 26 matched college records. Colleges without a match are not estimated.

A PRACTICAL READ

Four useful answers about Sociology

How much do Sociology bachelor's degree graduates earn?

The national median is $52,094 four years after completion across reportable bachelor's degree programs in this federal field.

How much federal debt do graduates have?

The median reported federal debt is $25,000. The figure excludes private loans and does not describe every graduate.

Does the college matter for Sociology?

Yes. The middle half of reporting programs ranges from $47,592 to $57,474 in observed year-4 earnings.

What careers are related to Sociology?

DegreeVerdict links this field to 5 displayed occupations using the official federal CIP–SOC crosswalk. Occupational wages are career context, not graduate salary promises.

COMPARE DEGREE LEVELS

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

Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma

Year-4 earnings
$51,562
Federal debt
$26,000
Programs in the comparison
4
3 report earnings →OPEN PROFILE

Associate's Degree

Year-4 earnings
$45,161
Federal debt
$10,062
Programs in the comparison
29
29 report earnings →CURRENT VIEW

Bachelor's Degree

Year-4 earnings
$52,094
Federal debt
$25,000
Programs in the comparison
509
465 report earnings →OPEN PROFILE

Master's Degree

Year-4 earnings
$66,645
Federal debt
Not available
Programs in the comparison
6
6 report earnings →OPEN PROFILE

Doctoral Degree

Year-4 earnings
$102,687
Federal debt
Not available
Programs in the comparison
2
2 report earnings →
COLLEGE-TO-COLLEGE RANGE

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$47,592National median$52,09475th percentile$57,474
465 programs report year‑4 earnings.
BEFORE YOU CHOOSE

Compare price, debt and earnings together

$57,47475th-percentile year-4 earnings among reporting programs
$25,000Median federal debt across programs that report it
68Programs with earnings in the top quarter and debt at or below the median
SHORTLIST BY QUESTION

Three useful places to start

Each choice answers a different question. These are observed signals, not an overall winner.

Highest observed earnings

Columbia University in the City of New York

$101,536 four years after completionNew York, NY · inspect the full program →Lowest reported federal debt

University of Southern California

$10,324 among completer borrowersLos Angeles, CA · inspect the full program →Largest recent graduating class

University of California, Berkeley

294 reported awards in 2024–25Berkeley, CA · inspect the full program →
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.

$83,649Observed year-4 earnings$65,974
$15,678Annual college-wide average net price$41,704
All reporting colleges Lower-price, higher-earnings quadrantAxes trim the outer 5% for readability; outliers remain pinned to the chart edge. Price is institution-wide context, not exact program tuition.
Build your shortlist

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 →
WHERE OUTCOMES ARE STRONGEST

See the spread, not just the national number.

1Columbia University in the City of New York$101,5362William & Mary$87,6553Vanderbilt University$83,6494Dartmouth College$81,7225George Washington University$78,8576Barnard College$77,8217New York University$77,6508Northwestern University$75,2679Cornell University$73,20010University of Pennsylvania$72,217

Observed year-4 earnings · top displayed records are not a universal ranking

Career outlook

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

Occupation wages describe workers in these jobs, not graduates of this degree. BLS projections are national estimates and do not guarantee hiring.

Managers, All Other$141,900 median wage622,190 jobs nationwide+4.9% projected growth through 2035 · 100,900 openings a yearTypical entry education: Bachelor's degree$74,300–$238,270 typical wage rangeSociologists$106,030 median wage2,260 jobs nationwide+3.8% projected growth through 2035 · 200 openings a yearTypical entry education: Master's degree$65,160–$172,550 typical wage rangeSociology Teachers, Postsecondary$84,290 median wage11,850 jobs nationwide+2.2% projected growth through 2035 · 1,000 openings a yearTypical entry education: Doctoral or professional degree$49,930–$160,140 typical wage rangeSocial Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary, All Other$72,990 median wage16,580 jobs nationwide+1.6% projected growth through 2035 · 1,300 openings a yearTypical entry education: Doctoral or professional degree$40,670–$164,420 typical wage rangeSocial Science Research Assistants$61,990 median wage30,640 jobs nationwide+5.0% projected growth through 2035 · 4,900 openings a yearTypical entry education: Bachelor's degree$38,090–$102,070 typical wage range

BLS May 2025 wages and 2025–35 projections. Career figures describe occupations, not graduates of a specific college.

COMPARE NEARBY FIELDS

Similar degrees in the same subject family

These alternatives share the same broad federal CIP family and credential level. Earnings and debt use the same definitions as this page.

Bachelor's Degree

Political Science and Government

Year-4 earnings
$61,929
Federal debt
$23,708
609 reporting programs →Bachelor's Degree

Economics

Year-4 earnings
$79,468
Federal debt
$22,907
390 reporting programs →Bachelor's Degree

Anthropology

Year-4 earnings
$45,920
Federal debt
$23,000
208 reporting programs →Bachelor's Degree

Geography and Cartography

Year-4 earnings
$57,751
Federal debt
$22,716
130 reporting programs →
EXPLORE BY STATE

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.

CA45 programs$57,696 average earningsNY41 programs$59,881 average earningsTX24 programs$48,903 average earningsPA24 programs$52,602 average earningsOH24 programs$48,913 average earningsMA21 programs$59,932 average earningsIL17 programs$55,175 average earningsVA15 programs$56,674 average earningsNJ15 programs$53,200 average earningsNC15 programs$48,138 average earningsFL13 programs$51,539 average earningsGA12 programs$49,250 average earnings

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.