Unlike for bachelor’s degrees, all reported categories of majors at the master’s degree level show projected increases for the Class of 2023, according to results of NACE’s Winter 2023 Salary Survey report.

These gains effectively put these graduates back where their Class of 2021 counterparts were.

Engineering graduates at this level are projected to be the top-paid majors, with an overall expected average salary of $86,826, up 2% from last year.

Likewise, the average salary projection for computer sciences majors is also tempered this year at an increase of just 1.6%, which raises their average from $82,384 to $83,681.

Math and sciences graduates at the master’s degree level are projected to receive an average starting salary that is 5% higher than last year. This is the second year they are reporting a healthy increase; last year, their average projected salary rose 6.7%.

Last year, Class of 2022 master’s degree business majors saw their average salary drop by 5.9%, but it is a very different story for Class of 2023 graduates: Their average salary projection is 13.1% higher, upping last year’s average of $71,021 to $80,305.

Meanwhile, the demand for computer sciences majors is highest among the reported master’s degree majors, with nearly one-quarter of respondents indicating plans to hire them.

The Winter 2023 Salary Survey report contains annual salary projections for Class of 2023 college graduates. The figures reported are for base salaries only and do not include bonuses, commissions, fringe benefits, or overtime rates. The report provides the detailed salary projections by academic major and degree level, along with breakouts by both industry and geographic region. Data contained in the report were obtained by surveying NACE employer members from October 5, 2022, through December 5, 2022. A total of 170 surveys were returned—a 19.5% response rate. NACE members can access the full report; an executive summary is available to the public.

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