Best Schools For Communications Majors by Salary Potential

Get the most out of your bachelor’s degree in journalism or communications. Check out the best undergraduate communication and journalism school rankings by salary.

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RankSchool NameEarly Career Pay
Mid-Career Pay
Rank:1School Name:University of California-BerkeleyEarly Career Pay:$79,300Mid-Career Pay:$168,800
Rank:2School Name:Santa Clara UniversityEarly Career Pay:$79,900Mid-Career Pay:$165,700
Rank:3School Name:University of PennsylvaniaEarly Career Pay:$84,400Mid-Career Pay:$163,600
Rank:4School Name:Stanford UniversityEarly Career Pay:$87,400Mid-Career Pay:$157,700
Rank:5School Name:University of California-Santa BarbaraEarly Career Pay:$70,000Mid-Career Pay:$156,200
Rank:6School Name:Vanderbilt UniversityEarly Career Pay:$77,400Mid-Career Pay:$153,900
Rank:7School Name:University of California-DavisEarly Career Pay:$71,800Mid-Career Pay:$152,000
Rank:8School Name:Wake Forest UniversityEarly Career Pay:$67,900Mid-Career Pay:$150,200
Rank:9School Name:Boston UniversityEarly Career Pay:$66,800Mid-Career Pay:$147,300
Rank:10School Name:Seattle UniversityEarly Career Pay:$69,000Mid-Career Pay:$146,000
Rank:11School Name:Fairfield UniversityEarly Career Pay:$72,400Mid-Career Pay:$145,400
Rank:12School Name:Northwestern UniversityEarly Career Pay:$70,600Mid-Career Pay:$145,200
Rank:13School Name:George Washington UniversityEarly Career Pay:$72,100Mid-Career Pay:$144,400
Rank:14School Name:New York UniversityEarly Career Pay:$70,300Mid-Career Pay:$143,500
Rank:15School Name:University of Virginia-Main CampusEarly Career Pay:$61,500Mid-Career Pay:$143,100
Rank:16School Name:Boston CollegeEarly Career Pay:$74,600Mid-Career Pay:$142,200
Rank:17School Name:University of Southern CaliforniaEarly Career Pay:$70,400Mid-Career Pay:$141,800
Rank:18School Name:University of California-Los AngelesEarly Career Pay:$72,800Mid-Career Pay:$141,600
Rank:19School Name:University of Michigan-Ann ArborEarly Career Pay:$67,500Mid-Career Pay:$139,000
Rank:19School Name:Syracuse UniversityEarly Career Pay:$68,700Mid-Career Pay:$139,000
Rank:21School Name:University of Puget SoundEarly Career Pay:$65,100Mid-Career Pay:$137,900
Rank:22School Name:Rutgers University-New BrunswickEarly Career Pay:$65,300Mid-Career Pay:$137,200
Rank:23School Name:Art Center College of DesignEarly Career Pay:$81,100Mid-Career Pay:$137,000
Rank:24School Name:San Jose State UniversityEarly Career Pay:$71,800Mid-Career Pay:$136,300
Rank:25School Name:Ithaca CollegeEarly Career Pay:$62,200Mid-Career Pay:$134,700

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College Student

The ability to communicate clearly and accurately is a key skill in any professional field, but how do communication and journalism majors stack up in terms of pay? If you want to study communication or journalism, you’d be well served to pick a school where students with these majors go on to earn high salaries. Payscale can help you identify those schools with our College Salary Report.

PayScale has median salary data for communication and journalism majors from scores of colleges and universities.

Perennially good schools for communications and journalism majors hoping to earn top dollar for their skills include the University of Southern California, New York University, Northwestern University, and the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. Colleges in big cities are a good bet for communication and journalism majors, as their proximity to big media outlets and companies will increase students’ chances of getting internships and jobs instead of ending up on local news in a small-town market.