# Theatre (bachelor's degree)

CIP 50.05. Page: https://educationguide.com/degrees/theatre

## Earnings
- Graduates 4 years after finishing: median $40,085 across 251 colleges (middle half $36,389–$44,045); median federal debt $25,000
- All workers ages 25-34 with a bachelor's in Drama And Theater Arts: median $42,640 (all bachelor's $62,049; high school $35,638; Census ACS 2020-2024)

## Jobs graduates hold (ages 25-34)
| Job | Share | U.S. median wage | Growth 2025-35 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Other Managers | 4% | not reported | — |
| Elementary And Middle School Teachers | 3% | $64,170 | -0.4% |
| Customer Service Representatives | 3% | $44,770 | -5.3% |
| Producers And Directors | 3% | $90,360 | 4% |
| Waiters And Waitresses | 3% | $35,230 | 2% |
| Actors | 3% | not reported | 0% |
| Retail Salespersons | 2% | $35,410 | -0.3% |
| Other Teachers And Instructors | 2% | not reported | — |

## By state
| State | Graduates 4 yrs (colleges) | Ages 25-34 (respondents) |
|---|---|---|
| AL | $38,370 (4) | — |
| AZ | $41,745 (3) | — |
| CA | $41,389 (23) | $42,640 (670) |
| CO | $44,480 (4) | — |
| FL | $39,106 (10) | $41,979 (154) |
| GA | $36,910 (7) | $44,688 (107) |
| IA | $39,816 (3) | — |
| IL | $39,956 (14) | $44,688 (254) |
| IN | $43,082 (5) | — |
| KY | $35,624 (3) | — |
| LA | $36,229 (3) | — |
| MA | $43,553 (5) | — |
| MD | $37,266 (4) | — |
| MI | $42,820 (7) | — |
| MN | $42,746 (4) | — |
| MO | $39,604 (5) | — |
| NC | $41,235 (8) | — |
| NJ | $38,922 (10) | — |
| NY | $39,974 (29) | $45,805 (632) |
| OH | $37,445 (19) | — |
| OK | $41,540 (3) | — |
| OR | $38,487 (3) | — |
| PA | $40,121 (13) | — |
| SC | $38,910 (4) | — |
| TN | $35,810 (4) | — |
| TX | $42,037 (16) | $46,437 (179) |
| UT | $40,314 (4) | — |
| VA | $44,591 (6) | — |
| WA | $42,538 (4) | — |
| WI | $37,507 (5) | — |

## Top colleges by graduate earnings (published states)
1. University of California-Davis (CA): $56,823
2. University of California-Berkeley (CA): $55,555
3. Florida Southern College (FL): $51,925
4. Chapman University (CA): $51,611
5. Pepperdine University (CA): $50,594
6. Loyola Marymount University (CA): $49,135
7. California State University-Sacramento (CA): $47,676
8. Radford University (VA): $46,725
9. University of South Florida (FL): $45,671
10. George Mason University (VA): $45,656
11. James Madison University (VA): $45,225
12. San Francisco State University (CA): $44,848

Method: https://educationguide.com/how-we-score#degrees

Free to reuse with attribution: cite "EducationGuide.com" with a link to the page URL. Most figures are U.S. government data (public domain); loan default rates and athletics come from the Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By 1.0, attribution required) and founding years from Wikidata (CC0). O*NET data: CC BY 4.0, O*NET 31.0 (USDOL/ETA).