WHAT HAPPENED A new analysis of federal college earnings data has identified mathematics at Duke University as the undergraduate program associated with the highest reported median earnings in the dataset. The reported median is $297,029 four years after graduation.
School Information System +1 That puts Duke mathematics substantially ahead of other highly paid programs. MIT mathematics is reported at $174,951, University of Chicago mathematics at $172,826 and Dartmouth mathematics at $168,580.
Degrees
The finding comes as the federal government has expanded the College Scorecard's program-level earnings information, allowing users to examine outcomes by individual field of study rather than relying only on university-wide figures. The Department of Education updated four-year earnings information in March 2026 for the 2017–18 and 2018–19 completion cohorts.
FSA Partner Connect +1 WHY IT MATTERS The significance is not simply that one group of Duke graduates had exceptionally high earnings. The newer data provides students with a much more granular view of the relationship between college, major and post-graduation earnings.
A university-wide median can hide large differences among individual programs. The federal field-of-study data makes it possible to compare mathematics at Duke with mathematics at MIT, computer science at Carnegie Mellon, engineering programs elsewhere and hundreds of other combinations.
The data therefore offers a different way to evaluate the potential economic outcomes of a degree.
However, earnings should not be interpreted as a guarantee of future income. The Department of Education itself cautions that historical post-graduation earnings are not necessarily predictive of what an individual student will earn.
FSA Partner Connect
BACKGROUND The College Scorecard was created to provide students and families with information about college costs and outcomes. The Department has progressively expanded its data to include earnings by field of study.
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The latest data update added new four-year earnings information for students completing credentials during the 2017–18 and 2018–19 academic years. The Department says these outcomes are measured four years after graduation.
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The earnings population is narrower than the full graduating class. Federal documentation says the evaluated cohort consists of people who received federal financial aid, while excluding people who were enrolled in school during the measurement year, died before the end of that period or did not work during it.
College Scorecard
This distinction is critical when interpreting the Duke result. LATEST DEVELOPMENT The finding is now receiving attention following the October 7 New York Times report and accompanying analysis examining earnings across colleges and majors. The broader analysis notes that the highest reported figure came from Duke's mathematics department rather than an Ivy League institution or a computer science program. School Information System
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
The College Scorecard will continue to be updated as newer earnings cohorts become available.
The Department has also been moving toward additional earnings measurements further from graduation because it recognizes that early-career earnings do not necessarily represent longer-term income. Federal documentation specifically notes plans to provide earnings information at later points after completion.
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