Salary Survey: Average Starting Salary for Class of 2013 Grads Increases 2.4 Percent
By Seattle Business Magazine September 5, 2013
Read the related Seattle Business article on the pros and cons of getting an MBA here: To MBA or not to MBA.
According to a new survey from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), 2013 grads are seeing a modest 2.4% increase in starting salaries this year, but business majors in particular are tripling that figure and enjoying a whopping 7.9% starting salary increase.
The overall average starting salary for Class of 2013 new college graduates currently stands at $45,327, an increase of 2.4 percent over the reported average of $44,259 for Class of 2012 graduates, according to the September 2013 Salary Survey.
Bolstering this positive news is the fact that salary increases are not limited to certain fields of study that are “carrying” the class. In fact, they are evident in all disciplines except one, computer science. (See Figure 1.)
Following are several highlights from the report:
Among the Class of 2013, the business disciplines experienced the largest increase to their overall average starting salary, which rose 7.9 percent to $55,635.
As a group, graduates in the computer sciences field saw their overall average starting salary decrease 2.5 percent from $60,038 last year to $58,547 this year.
Education majors not only saw their overall average salary bump up by 3.2 percent to $40,337, but all of the individual education fields also posted increases to their individual starting salary averages. The increases ranged from 1.7 percent for physical education majors to 7 percent for pre-elementary education graduates.
The overall average salary for engineering graduates rose 2.3 percent to $62,062. While some engineering disciplines saw large increases to their average starting salariese.g. bioengineering majors posted a 10.1 percent increaseother disciplines, such as computer engineering and aerospace engineering, saw decreases.
Overall, the average starting salary to graduates in the humanities and social sciences increased 2.6 percent over last year, bringing it to $37,791. Of the 11 reported majors within this group, eight posted increases to their average starting salaries, while just three posted decreases. On the higher end of the majors with increases were sociology (10.8 percent to $37,000) and criminal justice (8.1 percent to $34,800).
Graduates earning degrees in the math and science disciplines saw the least movement in their average starting salary in this report. The overall average salary for the group rose just 0.9 percent over last year, which brings it to $42,731.
| Figure 1: Average Salaries by Discipline | |||
| Broad Category | 2013 Average Salary | 2012 Average Salary | Percent Change |
| Business | $55,635 | $51,541 | 7.9% |
| Communications | $43,835 | $42,286 | 3.7% |
| Computer Science | $58,547 | $60,038 | -2.5% |
| Education | $40,337 | $39,080 | 3.2% |
| Engineering | $62,062 | $60,639 | 2.3% |
| Humanities & Social Sciences | $37,791 | $36,824 | 2.6% |
| Math & Sciences | $42,731 | $42,355 | 0.9% |
| Overall | $45,327 | $44,259 | 2.4% |
Source: September 2013 Salary Survey, National Association of Colleges and Employers