Majors

Best Colleges for English Language and Literature, by Earnings

1,135 of the colleges we track award a bachelor's degree in English Language and Literature, about 26,505 degrees a year. Across the 545 that report earnings, graduates make a median of $49,023 four years after finishing.

Rank	College	State	Median earnings, 4 years out	Degrees a year	Acceptance rate
1	Stanford University	CA	$82,036	52	3.6%
2	Seattle University	WA	$78,906	15	76.9%
3	Georgetown University	DC	$78,370	55	12.9%
4	University of Chicago	IL	$78,169	53	4.5%
5	Wake Forest University	NC	$77,847	37	21.7%
6	College of the Holy Cross	MA	$74,214	58	17.6%
7	Howard University	DC	$73,929	21	41.3%
8	Brown University	RI	$73,497	77	5.4%
9	Lehigh University	PA	$71,474	18	25.9%
10	George Washington University	DC	$70,766	37	47.1%
11	Boston College	MA	$70,141	84	16.4%
12	Tufts University	MA	$69,475	42	11.5%
13	CUNY York College	NY	$69,380	18	64.1%
14	University of Scranton	PA	$69,349	11	81.2%
15	Williams College	MA	$69,065	62	8.3%
16	Elon University	NC	$68,927	18	66.4%
17	University of San Diego	CA	$68,752	30	52.4%
18	Trinity College	CT	$68,063	31	29.3%
19	Northeastern University	MA	$67,877	18	5.2%
20	Northeastern University Professional Programs	MA	$67,877	3
21	Villanova University	PA	$67,157	36	27%
22	Loyola Marymount University	CA	$66,806	49	45.1%
23	Emory University	GA	$66,762	33	10.7%
24	New York University	NY	$66,306	18	7.7%
25	Seton Hall University	NJ	$65,714	22	73.3%
26	Amherst College	MA	$65,195	25	9%
27	Cornell University	NY	$65,089	44	8.8%
28	Texas Christian University	TX	$64,885	22	44.5%
29	Binghamton University	NY	$64,555	103	38.6%
30	Virginia Tech	VA	$64,225	77	54.8%
31	Loyola University Maryland	MD	$63,919	15	75.5%
32	Fordham University	NY	$63,834	111	59.3%
33	Providence College	RI	$63,736	24	50.9%
34	California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo	CA	$63,413	49	31.3%
35	Fairfield University	CT	$62,527	25	33.3%
36	Yale University	CT	$62,440	61	3.9%
37	Spelman College	GA	$62,425	25	24.9%
38	Brandeis University	MA	$62,291	32	40.5%
39	Northwestern University	IL	$62,147	46	7.7%
40	Bates College	ME	$62,082	25	13.3%
41	Assumption University	MA	$62,073	17	83%
42	University of Pennsylvania	PA	$61,989	47	5.4%
43	St Lawrence University	NY	$61,335	32	54.3%
44	Barnard College	NY	$61,327	62	8.8%
45	Princeton University	NJ	$61,323	31	4.6%
46	University of Notre Dame	IN	$60,998	43	11.3%
47	Gettysburg College	PA	$60,876	38	38.9%
48	Colgate University	NY	$60,702	39	13.9%
49	Syracuse University	NY	$60,602	22	45.9%
50	New Jersey City University	NJ	$60,574	22	98.4%
51	Manhattan University	NY	$60,508	11	78.9%
52	Vassar College	NY	$60,461	37	18.6%
53	Vanderbilt University	TN	$60,439	52	5.9%
54	Monmouth University	NJ	$60,220	41	89%
55	University of California-Berkeley	CA	$60,187	240	11%
56	Stonehill College	MA	$60,131	17	66.3%
57	CUNY Bernard M Baruch College	NY	$59,994	35	47.5%
58	Wellesley College	MA	$59,865	27	14.1%
59	CUNY Medgar Evers College	NY	$59,650	4	86.1%
60	Sonoma State University	CA	$59,418	76	93.4%
61	Columbia University	NY	$59,396	87	4%
62	Wheaton College (Massachusetts)	MA	$59,381	18	67.7%
63	University of Southern California	CA	$59,345	15	9.8%
64	University of California-Santa Barbara	CA	$59,334	184	33%
65	University of Maryland	MD	$59,288	100	44.8%
66	Siena University	NY	$59,280	35	69%
67	St. John's University-New York	NY	$59,267	34	83.4%
68	National University	CA	$59,192	26
69	Gonzaga University	WA	$59,151	35	81.7%
70	University of California-Davis	CA	$59,012	153	41.8%
71	Lake Forest College	IL	$58,901	18	56.8%
72	University of Oklahoma	OK	$58,854	33	76.6%
73	University of California-Merced	CA	$58,623	24	90.5%
74	Boston University	MA	$58,564	56	11.1%
75	Westmont College	CA	$58,459	13	77.1%
76	Drew University	NJ	$58,452	27	67.8%
77	Mount Saint Mary College	NY	$58,434	11	88.9%
78	Saint Michael's College	VT	$58,137	8	84.5%
79	Dartmouth College	NH	$58,090	43	5.4%
80	Chapman University	CA	$58,055	19	65.4%
81	Wofford College	SC	$58,036	22	51.9%
82	University of Richmond	VA	$58,014	20	22.2%
83	Rowan University	NJ	$57,895	39	77.7%
84	University of Dayton	OH	$57,868	29	65.5%
85	University of Michigan	MI	$57,809	113	15.6%
86	Tulane University of Louisiana	LA	$57,752	67	14%
87	Saint Mary's College of California	CA	$57,651	14	86.5%
88	University of Washington	WA	$57,649	97	39.1%
89	College of William & Mary	VA	$57,616	51	34.1%
90	Dickinson College	PA	$57,603	23	42.1%
91	Saint Anselm College	NH	$57,585	9	78.1%
92	Drake University	IA	$57,563	4	63.9%
93	University of Maryland-Baltimore County	MD	$57,547	36	72.4%
94	James Madison University	VA	$57,487	39	71.5%
95	Mercy University	NY	$57,069	21	85.8%
96	University of Houston-Clear Lake	TX	$57,052	22	90.5%
97	Fairleigh Dickinson University-Florham Campus	NJ	$56,969	9	95.2%
98	Fairleigh Dickinson University-Metropolitan Campus	NJ	$56,969	3	90.7%
99	The College of New Jersey	NJ	$56,905	59	62.3%
100	CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice	NY	$56,768	36	57.1%

Showing the top 100 of 545 colleges that report earnings. 590 more colleges award this degree but have no earnings figure, usually because the program is small.

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Frequently asked questions

Which college has the highest-paid English Language and Literature graduates?

Stanford University ($82,036), Seattle University ($78,906), Georgetown University ($78,370), University of Chicago ($78,169), Wake Forest University ($77,847) report the highest median earnings four years after graduation.

How much do English Language and Literature majors make?

The median across 545 colleges is $49,023 four years after graduation. By college it runs from $29,768 to $82,036.

Which colleges have the biggest English Language and Literature programs?

By bachelor's degrees awarded in a year: University of Central Florida (338), Florida State University (295), California State University-Long Beach (272), University of California-Berkeley (240), University of California-Los Angeles (221).

Does a higher-earning program mean a better program?

Not on its own. Earnings reflect where graduates live, what jobs they take, and who enrolled in the first place, as well as the teaching. The figures cover only graduates who received federal financial aid, and small programs are left out, so a college missing from this list may still have a strong department.

Source: College Scorecard, Most Recent Data by Field of Study (U.S. Department of Education), 2026-06-10 release, federal program category "English Language and Literature, General". Earnings are medians for graduates who received federal financial aid, working and not enrolled, four years after a bachelor's degree.