---
title: Carnegie Mellon University — cost, debt & earnings (College Scorecard)
location: Pittsburgh, PA
control: Private nonprofit
source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (2026-06-10 release)
sourceUrl: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/
---

# Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, PA · Private nonprofit · Bachelor-granting

> Federal College Scorecard institution **medians** — not a prediction of any one student's outcome, and not a figure for any single program. Earnings/debt cover federally-aided students.

## The bottom line

| Figure | Value | Status |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Typical earnings, 10 yrs after entry | $114,862 | recorded |
| Earnings range (25th–75th pct) | $72,560 – $182,769 | recorded |
| Typical federal debt | $20,250 | recorded |
| Debt of students who withdrew | $15,097 | recorded |
| Completion rate | 94% | recorded |
| Average annual net cost | $83,654 | recorded |
| % earning above a $28k HS-grad wage | 87% | recorded |
| Debt ÷ a year's earnings | 0.18× | derived |
| Earnings premium vs $28k HS benchmark | $86,862 | derived |

**94% of students finish** — the loans are owed whether or not you graduate, so read every figure below next to this number.

Typical **federal** loan debt is $20,250 (≈ 18% of a year's typical earnings here). Note: this counts federal loans only — not private loans, Parent PLUS, or family savings — so true borrowing is usually higher; and because dropouts borrow less, low-completion schools can show a deceptively low debt figure.

## Earnings by major (the number that decides "worth it")

> **Different measure — read on its own terms.** These are median earnings **1 year after completing the program** (early career, graduates only) — NOT the 10-years-after-entry school-wide figure above. Do not compare a program figure to the school figure; compare majors to each other. The Dept. of Education omits programs with too few graduates.

By program, early-career pay ranges from $22,609 to $161,723 across 31 program(s).

| Major | Credential | Pay (1 yr out) | Median debt |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Computer Science. | Bachelor's Degree | $161,723 | $21,442 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Master's Degree | $139,390 | $110,500 |
| Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $116,935 | $22,224 |
| Computer and Information Sciences, General. | Master's Degree | $109,615 | $61,305 |
| Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering. | Master's Degree | $109,283 | $61,500 |
| Mechatronics, Robotics, and Automation Engineering. | Master's Degree | $106,551 | not reported |
| Mathematics and Statistics, Other. | Bachelor's Degree | $95,621 | not reported |
| Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. | Master's Degree | $91,653 | $51,970 |
| Design and Applied Arts. | Master's Degree | $89,756 | $64,233 |
| Statistics. | Bachelor's Degree | $89,636 | $21,000 |
| Statistics. | Master's Degree | $85,976 | not reported |
| Design and Applied Arts. | Bachelor's Degree | $85,041 | $24,500 |
| Mechanical Engineering. | Master's Degree | $85,039 | $34,193 |
| Health and Medical Administrative Services. | Master's Degree | $84,553 | not reported |
| Systems Science and Theory. | Bachelor's Degree | $82,123 | $23,250 |
| Chemical Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $80,722 | $23,125 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Bachelor's Degree | $78,783 | $23,250 |
| Economics. | Bachelor's Degree | $78,188 | $22,020 |
| Biomedical/Medical Engineering. | Master's Degree | $71,023 | $65,577 |
| Mechanical Engineering. | Bachelor's Degree | $68,038 | $22,777 |
| Civil Engineering. | Master's Degree | $67,478 | not reported |
| Public Policy Analysis. | Master's Degree | $64,716 | $41,000 |
| Public Administration. | Master's Degree | $60,729 | $40,772 |
| Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies. | Master's Degree | $49,841 | $29,204 |
| Psychology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $45,925 | not reported |
| Architecture. | Bachelor's Degree | $44,216 | not reported |
| Arts, Entertainment, and Media Management. | Master's Degree | $40,916 | $70,864 |
| Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $39,593 | not reported |
| Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft. | Bachelor's Degree | $26,994 | $25,000 |
| Fine and Studio Arts. | Bachelor's Degree | $25,870 | $21,281 |
| Music. | Master's Degree | $22,609 | $50,693 |

## What this is — and is NOT

Institution-wide medians from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. **Not** a prediction of what you would earn or owe, **not** a figure for any single program (a CS and a fine-arts graduate of the same school diverge enormously), **not** proof the school caused the outcome (selection, not causation), and **not** a "best college" ranking. Explore Carnegie Mellon University by field of study at the official Scorecard: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?211440

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Structured data (JSON-LD), each figure labeled by epistemic status: `/education/carnegie-mellon-university-pa.jsonld` · all schools: `/education`