The Top-Paying College Majors

Quote of the Week:

“If we had no winter, the spring would not be as pleasant; if we did not sometimes taste adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.” —Anne Bradstreet, poet from the 1700s

Fact of the Week:

Despite not knowing she was on the ballot until the day of the election, Susanna Salter became the first woman elected to mayor when she won the race in Argonia, Kansas in 1887. Women had just recently gained the right to vote in municipal elections, and some disgruntled men decided to put Salter’s name on the ballot. Their hope was that a bad loss would humiliate women and discourage them from seeking to participate in politics---except Salter didn’t lose.

Because candidates did not have to be disclosed before election day, Salter had no idea about the stunt until she went to vote. But when she saw her name, she agreed she would serve as mayor if she won. Both the Women’s Christian Temperance Union and the Republican Party then decided to back her, resulting in a win that claimed two-thirds of the vote.

Salter was actually the daughter of the first governor of Argonia, and she knowledgeably fulfilled her duties. She did not seek re-election after serving for one year, and was paid $1 for her time (roughly $30 in today’s value). Later, she moved to Oklahoma with her husband and died in 1961 at the age of 101.

Kansapedia contributed to this article.

News Update:

Via Peterson's

Each year, compensation and data software company Payscale tracks the highest paying college majors. CBS compiled a list of one through sixty, ranking the degrees by the average salary for a graduate three years into their job. So, which studies should you pursue if you want to come out rich? The answer is… drum roll, please… electrical engineering and computer science.

It’s an unsurprising answer, but what is surprising is the staggering annual salary: an average of $119,200 by your third year out of school. Obtaining a degree in either of these fields is no easy task, but the reward is handsome if you manage. Second on the list is Physician Assistant Studies, which has an average salary of $104,600, followed by petroleum engineering ($99,800). Operations research and industrial engineering ($93,900) and nuclear engineering technology (92,600) round out the top five.

Notice a theme yet? Yes, if you want to make money, a degree in engineering is the way to go. In fact, spots six, seven, eight, and ten are also owned by a subset degree of engineering, with aeronautics and astronautics at number nine the only outlier. If engineering doesn’t interest you, however, there are several lesser known degrees that make the list.

Paper science comes in at 12, dental hygiene at 21, marine transportation at 34, and packaging science at 35. Not quite your cup of tea? You could try radiation therapy (44) or hotel administration (47), both of which will earn you around $74,000.

There is certainly a dearth of liberal arts degrees on the list, and a somewhat scarcity of business degrees. The traditional corporate accounting/finance major does come in at 31, with a median salary of $77,100 by your third year, but there are few others.

Ultimately, the lesson seems to be that if you want to guarantee a good salary out of college, pursue engineering: it occupies 30 of the top 60 spots.

CBS News contributed to this article.

Sports Update:

Via Fansided

The College Football Playoff is set, and for only the second time in its eight-year history, there will be no Alabama. Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban tried to sway the playoff committee, but they would not change their minds; in the end, they voted Georgia, Michigan, TCU, and Ohio State into the final CFP ranking.

Georgia opens as 6.5-point favorites over Ohio State. They’re the reigning national champions and have a 13-0 record, and except for a few midseason games in which they slumped, they’ve otherwise looked like the best team in football. Ohio State’s lone loss this year came to Michigan, and though they didn’t play in the Big Ten title game, their resume was enough to sneak them into the last CFP spot after USC’s loss in the Pac-12 title game.

Michigan is 13-0 and opens as 9.5 point favorites over TCU. Their spotless record includes wins over Ohio State and Penn State, and a 43-22 victory over Purdue to claim the Big Ten Championship. TCU, meanwhile, took a perfect record into the Big 12 title game, only to get stuffed at the goal line in overtime and lose 31-28 to Kansas State. They might be nearly double-digit underdogs, but they have a Heisman finalist at quarterback and know how to win tight games.

The semifinals will be played on New Year’s Eve with the championship game taking place on January 9th.

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David’s father has three sons named Snap, Crackle, and ____?