Texas A&M Ranks First In State, High Nationally For Salaries Among Graduates Of Public Universities
Texas A&M University ranks tops among Texas public universities on the basis of median starting salaries for graduates and what they are earning midway in their careers, according to the latest national survey by PayScale, a Seattle-based compensation data firm.
The PayScale survey showed Texas A&M graduates in the 2011-12 timeframe to have median starting salaries of $50,200 and mid-career annual earnings of $92,500.
Most of the public institutions elsewhere in the nation that outranked Texas A&M in the broad-based survey were in technical or otherwise highly specialized areas, according to an analysis of the findings. Of the institutions that do not have technical, maritime or mining notations in their names, the only public institutions ranking higher in starting salaries are the University of Illinois ($51,500) and the University of California at Berkeley ($51,400).
A PayScale survey published earlier this year by Bloomberg Businessweek placed Texas A&M among the top 10 public institutions nationally on a return-on-investment (ROI) basis — what graduates earn in their careers compared to their college costs.
Traditionally, Texas A&M ranks high in national surveys about colleges and universities, particularly those that have “best value” perspectives. Earlier this month, U.S. News & World Report ranked Texas A&M second nationally among public universities in its “Great Schools, Great Prices” category. SmartMoney magazine ranked Texas A&M first nationally in 2011 for “payback ratio”— which the magazine defined as the earnings levels of an institution’s graduates compared to what they paid in tuition, fees and related costs for their undergraduate educations. The Wall Street Journal ranked Texas A&M second nationally in a 2010 survey based on employers’ satisfaction with an institution’s graduates.
Texas A&M also fared well in a New York Times listing of what business leaders worldwide say are the top institutions from which they recruit — and ranked first in Texas. The New York Times spread, titled “What business leaders say,” is based on responses from “hundreds of chief executives and chairmen chosen from leading companies in 10 countries,” according to a notation explaining the selection process. The polling that produced the list of 150 institutions was conducted by the surveying company Emerging. Overall, Texas A&M placed eighth among public U.S. universities and first among all public or private universities in the Southwest or deep South.
More than 3,000 employers, including 80 percent of the Fortune 100 companies, recruit at Texas A&M each year, according to records maintained at its Career Center. Personnel there also report that job opportunities posted for Texas A&M students increased 95 percent from 2009-10 to 2010-11 — from 4,600 to 9,100.
Overall results of Pay Scale’s latest survey can be viewed here.
Media contact: Lane Stephenson, Texas A&M News & Information Services.
