Majors

Best Colleges for Public Relations and Advertising, by Earnings

353 of the colleges we track award a bachelor's degree in Public Relations and Advertising, about 15,109 degrees a year. Across the 170 that report earnings, graduates make a median of $62,194 four years after finishing.

Rank	College	State	Median earnings, 4 years out	Degrees a year	Acceptance rate
1	Syracuse University	NY	$90,535	218	45.9%
2	Southern Methodist University	TX	$89,330	107	63.3%
3	University of Southern California	CA	$87,946	80	9.8%
4	George Washington University	DC	$85,459	39	47.1%
5	University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign	IL	$83,451	191	42.4%
6	University of Miami	FL	$82,999	131	18.9%
7	Pepperdine University	CA	$81,417	85	62.9%
8	University of San Francisco	CA	$81,285	25	61.7%
9	Brigham Young University	UT	$80,841	202	67.8%
10	University of Texas at Austin	TX	$80,221	487	26.6%
11	Chapman University	CA	$80,139	50	65.4%
12	Miami University-Oxford	OH	$79,710	151	75.4%
13	Miami University-Hamilton	OH	$79,710	11
14	Miami University-Middletown	OH	$79,710	1
15	Pace University	NY	$79,376	69	75.9%
16	American University	DC	$78,410	107	62%
17	Endicott College	MA	$77,253	23	71.2%
18	Johnson & Wales University-Providence	RI	$77,025	11	88.4%
19	Pennsylvania State University	PA	$76,246	349	60.6%
20	Pennsylvania State University-World Campus	PA	$76,246	33	91.2%
21	Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Harrisburg	PA	$76,246	1	97.6%
22	Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Brandywine	PA	$76,246	1	98.1%
23	University of Oklahoma	OK	$76,148	78	76.6%
24	Manhattan University	NY	$75,594	11	78.9%
25	Butler University	IN	$75,382	79	85.1%
26	Assumption University	MA	$74,900	15	83%
27	University of Colorado Boulder	CO	$74,779	411	78.1%
28	University of Georgia	GA	$74,531	298	37.7%
29	Quinnipiac University	CT	$73,547	54	72.2%
30	University of Oregon	OR	$73,410	430	88.3%
31	University of Rhode Island	RI	$72,328	144	72.2%
32	Clemson University	SC	$71,968	26	38.3%
33	Indiana Wesleyan University-Marion	IN	$71,669	6	88.9%
34	Indiana Wesleyan University-National & Global	IN	$71,669	3
35	Texas Christian University	TX	$71,186	150	44.5%
36	DePaul University	IL	$71,045	147	75.9%
37	Seton Hall University	NJ	$70,802	17	73.3%
38	Bowling Green State University-Main Campus	OH	$70,583	17	81%
39	Gonzaga University	WA	$69,977	13	81.7%
40	University of Florida	FL	$69,600	381	24.2%
41	Michigan State University	MI	$69,300	444	84.8%
42	Loyola University Chicago	IL	$68,942	119	81.6%
43	Carthage College	WI	$68,708	1	87.1%
44	The University of Alabama	AL	$68,227	315	76.6%
45	Ithaca College	NY	$68,029	119	69%
46	Northwood University	MI	$68,008	1	64.5%
47	Howard University	DC	$67,881	96	41.3%
48	Temple University	PA	$67,840	253	80.4%
49	Illinois State University	IL	$67,752	65	88.2%
50	St. John's University-New York	NY	$67,728	42	83.4%
51	Washington State University	WA	$67,647	262	86.6%
52	South Dakota State University	SD	$67,607	22	98.3%
53	San Diego State University	CA	$67,414	34	36.2%
54	Auburn University	AL	$67,413	86	45.9%
55	Belmont University	TN	$67,040	9	95.3%
56	Columbia College Chicago	IL	$66,798	27	89.5%
57	Hofstra University	NY	$66,780	40	68.1%
58	Drexel University	PA	$66,750	42	79.4%
59	Suffolk University	MA	$66,709	60	82.3%
60	Central Washington University	WA	$66,538	12	90.6%
61	The University of Texas at Arlington	TX	$66,454	1	79.9%
62	Florida State University	FL	$65,941	84	24.2%
63	University of Vermont	VT	$65,706	73	65.3%
64	Florida International University	FL	$65,343	222	54.7%
65	University of South Carolina	SC	$65,248	183	60.2%
66	Marquette University	WI	$64,978	91	81.3%
67	Georgia Southern University	GA	$64,934	53	87.9%
68	Duquesne University	PA	$64,538	51	83.6%
69	Kennesaw State University	GA	$64,501	170	69.2%
70	Western Michigan University	MI	$64,127	78	84.6%
71	Franklin University	OH	$64,101	26
72	University of Northern Iowa	IA	$64,067	36	92.7%
73	Rider University	NJ	$63,612	18	78.6%
74	The University of Tampa	FL	$63,368	90	40.3%
75	The University of Tennessee-Knoxville	TN	$63,314	134	41.6%
76	Drake University	IA	$63,302	63	63.9%
77	Iowa State University	IA	$62,965	80	88.7%
78	University of Kentucky	KY	$62,754	134	92.9%
79	Rowan University	NJ	$62,661	184	77.7%
80	Central Connecticut State University	CT	$62,580	40	73.3%
81	Siena Heights University	MI	$62,530	14	68.9%
82	High Point University	NC	$62,467	14	75.3%
83	Biola University	CA	$62,319	30	74.4%
84	University of Portland	OR	$62,264	22	89.2%
85	Texas Tech University	TX	$62,247	259	72.7%
86	University of Central Florida	FL	$62,140	105	40.1%
87	Loras College	IA	$62,087	20	99.9%
88	Baldwin Wallace University	OH	$61,966	5	75.7%
89	University of Central Missouri	MO	$61,784	15	63.8%
90	Utah State University	UT	$61,674	25	92.5%
91	Susquehanna University	PA	$61,423	29	81.4%
92	Simpson College	IA	$61,219	13	86.2%
93	University of Nebraska-Lincoln	NE	$61,145	226	87.5%
94	Ball State University	IN	$60,686	64	85.5%
95	University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh	WI	$60,672	23	86.5%
96	Xavier University	OH	$60,642	18	86.4%
97	North Central College	IL	$60,573	8	77.3%
98	Coe College	IA	$60,540	4	64%
99	Missouri State University-Springfield	MO	$60,390	29	90.5%
100	Kent State University at Kent	OH	$60,218	52	86.3%

Showing the top 100 of 170 colleges that report earnings. 183 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 Public Relations and Advertising graduates?

Syracuse University ($90,535), Southern Methodist University ($89,330), University of Southern California ($87,946), George Washington University ($85,459), University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign ($83,451) report the highest median earnings four years after graduation.

How much do Public Relations and Advertising majors make?

The median across 170 colleges is $62,194 four years after graduation. By college it runs from $18,739 to $90,535.

Which colleges have the biggest Public Relations and Advertising programs?

By bachelor's degrees awarded in a year: Southern New Hampshire University (608), University of Texas at Austin (487), Michigan State University (444), University of Oregon (430), University of Colorado Boulder (411).

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 "Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication". Earnings are medians for graduates who received federal financial aid, working and not enrolled, four years after a bachelor's degree.