Federal data
Highest earning certificate liberal arts programs in the United States
U.S. liberal arts programs, ranked by median earnings one year after completion, from the College Scorecard field-of-study file (September 18, 2026). Only programs with at least 30 counted graduates in the earnings sample are shown, and at least 5 programs must qualify for this list to exist.
| Rank | School | City | Sector | Median earnings, 1 year after | Graduates counted |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Purdue University-Main Campus | West Lafayette | Public, 4-year | $79,921 | 75 |
| 2 | Pennsylvania State University | Reading | Public, 4-year | $74,308 | 71 |
| 3 | Henry Ford College | Dearborn | Public, 4-year | $51,663 | 55 |
| 4 | University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee | Milwaukee | Public, 4-year | $40,717 | 69 |
| 5 | Indiana University-Bloomington | Bloomington | Public, 4-year | $33,236 | 111 |
| 6 | NorthWest Arkansas Community College | Bentonville | Public, 2-year | $31,922 | 56 |
| 7 | Vincennes University | Vincennes | Public, 4-year | $31,882 | 201 |
| 8 | Tidewater Community College | Norfolk | Public, 2-year | $31,688 | 34 |
| 9 | College of Western Idaho | Nampa | Public, 2-year | $31,439 | 173 |
| 10 | Clackamas Community College | Oregon City | Public, 2-year | $31,280 | 43 |
| 11 | Virginia Peninsula Community College | Hampton | Public, 2-year | $31,228 | 53 |
| 12 | Santiago Canyon College | Orange | Public, 2-year | $31,050 | 77 |
| 13 | Chesapeake College | Wye Mills | Public, 2-year | $29,611 | 38 |
| 14 | Northeast Iowa Community College | Calmar | Public, 2-year | $29,491 | 95 |
| 15 | Piedmont Virginia Community College | Charlottesville | Public, 2-year | $28,910 | 97 |
| 16 | College of the Canyons | Santa Clarita | Public, 2-year | $28,886 | 45 |
| 17 | Three Rivers College | Poplar Bluff | Public, 2-year | $28,854 | 124 |
| 18 | Gavilan College | Gilroy | Public, 2-year | $28,543 | 36 |
| 19 | Santa Ana College | Santa Ana | Public, 4-year | $27,782 | 132 |
| 20 | Merced College | Merced | Public, 2-year | $27,413 | 87 |
| 21 | Cabrillo College | Aptos | Public, 2-year | $27,154 | 104 |
| 22 | Germanna Community College | Locust Grove | Public, 2-year | $26,037 | 178 |
| 23 | Modesto Junior College | Modesto | Public, 4-year | $25,984 | 43 |
Earnings cover federally aided graduates only, as published by College Scorecard.
How to read this. A smaller program can show a high or low figure from just a few graduates, and this earnings figure only ever covers students who received federal aid, so it does not describe every graduate.