Which University of Michigan major has the lowest debt?

Writing and Rhetoric graduates leave with a median of $13,999 in federal loans, the lowest among 56 University of Michigan bachelor's programs that report debt.

How much does University of Michigan cost?

In-state tuition and fees are $17,736 a year, and $60,946 for out-of-state students. After grants and scholarships, the average net price is $13,138 a year.

How many University of Michigan programs report graduate pay?

56 bachelor's programs at University of Michigan report first-year pay, and all of them also report federal debt.

University of Michigan Programs, Ranked by Graduate Pay and Debt

University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
Public university
Ann Arbor, MI
34,177 undergraduates

College Scorecard June 2026 release

The short answer

56 University of Michigan bachelor's programs report what graduates earn. Computer and Information Science pays the most in the first year ($113,634), and Theatre the least ($17,577). The median program pays $43,624.

In-state tuition and fees$17,736Per year. Out-of-state $60,946

Average net price after aid$13,138Per year

Graduation rate93%Within 6 years

Admission rate16%Of applicants

All 56 bachelor's programs, ranked

Each figure is the median for the program's graduates. "Rank in Michigan" compares first-year pay with the same field's bachelor's programs across Michigan. Programs that don't report a figure are listed last when you sort by it.

#	Program	Year 1 pay	Year 5 pay	Debt	Rank in Michigan
1	Computer and Information ScienceAbout 1,215 graduates a year	$113,634	$153,297	$20,000	1st of 14
2	Software and Media ApplicationsGraduates a year not reported	$98,117	Not reported	$19,769	1st of 2
3	Business AdministrationAbout 613 graduates a year	$93,674	$140,827	$19,000	1st of 29
4	Computer EngineeringAbout 104 graduates a year	$92,501	$123,120	$20,500	1st of 7
5	Information ScienceAbout 172 graduates a year	$88,515	$125,257	$20,875	1st of 3
6	Electrical EngineeringAbout 96 graduates a year	$87,606	$109,107	$18,667	1st of 12
7	Industrial EngineeringAbout 138 graduates a year	$86,476	$109,239	$20,306	1st of 5
8	Mechanical EngineeringAbout 239 graduates a year	$82,823	$101,514	$21,750	1st of 16
9	Human ResourcesAbout 48 graduates a year	$82,714	$100,182	$14,225	1st of 12
10	MathematicsAbout 211 graduates a year	$80,676	$107,395	$21,589	1st of 3
11	Aerospace EngineeringAbout 103 graduates a year	$80,225	$113,025	$21,603	1st of 2
12	Chemical EngineeringAbout 97 graduates a year	$79,551	$100,000	$21,250	2nd of 6
13	NursingAbout 173 graduates a year	$75,458	$81,553	$19,000	7th of 23
14	Materials EngineeringAbout 44 graduates a year	$75,041	$95,471	$17,750	2nd of 3
15	Biomedical EngineeringAbout 138 graduates a year	$70,307	$85,471	$20,000	1st of 4
16	EconomicsAbout 608 graduates a year	$68,416	$108,627	$19,690	1st of 10
17	Civil EngineeringAbout 55 graduates a year	$67,764	$88,870	$18,750	6th of 6
18	StatisticsAbout 107 graduates a year	$64,371	$105,494	$23,250	1st of 3
19	Other Interdisciplinary StudiesAbout 8 graduates a year	$59,105	$106,619	$19,000	1st of 5
20	Environmental EngineeringAbout 25 graduates a year	$57,824	$88,990	$19,028	2nd of 2
21	PhysicsAbout 70 graduates a year	$53,019	$75,644	$22,250	1st of 2
22	CommunicationsAbout 209 graduates a year	$50,556	$81,316	$20,376	1st of 18
23	Public PolicyAbout 77 graduates a year	$49,685	$86,020	$21,000	1st of 2
24	Geology and Earth ScienceAbout 54 graduates a year	$45,974	$55,772	$17,875	1st of 5
25	Teacher EducationAbout 59 graduates a year	$45,522	$53,154	$16,335	6th of 17
26	Cognitive ScienceAbout 138 graduates a year	$44,698	Not reported	$22,500	1st of 1
27	International StudiesAbout 154 graduates a year	$44,446	$72,091	$15,053	1st of 3
28	Dental Hygiene and AssistingAbout 33 graduates a year	$43,742	$51,393	$26,521	3rd of 3
29	Kinesiology and Exercise ScienceAbout 279 graduates a year	$43,506	$73,196	$19,135	1st of 18
30	Germanic LanguagesAbout 39 graduates a year	$41,286	$55,147	$18,602	2nd of 2
31	Political ScienceAbout 247 graduates a year	$39,702	$78,402	$18,862	1st of 14
32	ArchitectureAbout 68 graduates a year	$38,998	$65,185	$18,750	1st of 1
33	Liberal Arts and General StudiesAbout 52 graduates a year	$38,065	$52,125	$20,728	6th of 12
34	PhilosophyAbout 33 graduates a year	$37,885	$74,182	$21,510	1st of 1
35	Public HealthAbout 94 graduates a year	$36,181	Not reported	$18,903	3rd of 5
36	Ethnic, Cultural, and Gender StudiesAbout 30 graduates a year	$33,991	$59,348	$14,802	1st of 1
37	SociologyAbout 134 graduates a year	$33,832	$64,923	$18,568	4th of 10
38	EnglishAbout 113 graduates a year	$33,742	$56,880	$16,937	3rd of 11
39	MicrobiologyAbout 28 graduates a year	$32,022	Not reported	$18,644	2nd of 2
40	Experimental PsychologyAbout 761 graduates a year	$31,568	$63,419	$18,708	1st of 2
41	Fine and Studio ArtsAbout 172 graduates a year	$31,367	$51,802	$19,319	1st of 11
42	Writing and RhetoricAbout 27 graduates a year	$31,239	$50,559	$13,999	3rd of 11
43	HistoryAbout 107 graduates a year	$31,215	$65,724	$19,494	7th of 10
44	Environmental Science and ConservationAbout 134 graduates a year	$29,264	$59,553	$16,577	6th of 9
45	Area StudiesAbout 47 graduates a year	$28,261	$62,545	$16,984	1st of 1
46	Cell Biology and AnatomyAbout 9 graduates a year	$28,062	$67,607	$20,422	1st of 1
47	Linguistics and Language StudiesAbout 32 graduates a year	$27,699	$53,477	$15,124	1st of 2
48	BiologyAbout 258 graduates a year	$26,888	$61,737	$20,000	13th of 22
49	Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyAbout 284 graduates a year	$26,151	$65,675	$17,750	4th of 4
50	Film and PhotographyAbout 96 graduates a year	$25,565	$49,997	$19,760	3rd of 7
51	AnthropologyAbout 53 graduates a year	$24,079	$65,575	$14,623	5th of 6
52	NeuroscienceAbout 189 graduates a year	$23,468	$68,761	$18,268	4th of 4
53	Ecology and EvolutionAbout 30 graduates a year	$22,844	$37,268	$15,242	3rd of 3
54	Romance LanguagesAbout 91 graduates a year	$22,803	$64,140	$17,677	8th of 8
55	MusicAbout 100 graduates a year	$22,272	$32,036	$19,397	7th of 7
56	TheatreAbout 54 graduates a year	$17,577	$29,295	$20,798	4th of 6

Program names link to the program's own page, and Michigan ranks link to the full ranking for the field. A program gets its own page when it reports both pay and debt and at least five Michigan programs in the field do too.

Some nursing bachelor's programs are for nurses who are already licensed and working (RN-to-BSN). College Scorecard counts them with programs for new students, and their graduates' pay reflects years of nursing experience, so high pay at a program here may not mean higher starting pay for a new nurse.

3 more bachelor's programs report debt but not pay, so they aren't listed.

Quick picks

Highest first-year pay

Computer and Information Science$113,634
Software and Media Applications$98,117
Business Administration$93,674
Computer Engineering$92,501
Information Science$88,515

Lowest median debt

Writing and Rhetoric$13,999
Human Resources$14,225
Anthropology$14,623
Ethnic, Cultural, and Gender Studies$14,802
International Studies$15,053

Largest programs

Computer and Information ScienceAbout 1,215 graduates a year
Experimental PsychologyAbout 761 graduates a year
Business AdministrationAbout 613 graduates a year
EconomicsAbout 608 graduates a year
Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyAbout 284 graduates a year

Common questions

Computer and Information Science graduates earn a median of $113,634 in their first year, the most of 56 University of Michigan bachelor's programs that report pay.

About this data

Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid, and earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school.
Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
Tuition, net price, graduation rate, and admission rate are for the whole school, not one program.
Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of Michigan rankings when their main campus is in another state.
Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago.

Sources

U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
NCES, IPEDS tuition and fees, 2023-24, for in-district tuition labels