ROI Major

Business Administration and Management at Georgia State University

GA · Bachelor's Degree · CIP 52.02

Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Business Administration and Management degree from Georgia State University earn a median salary of $66,525 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in GA, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $73,508. The degree typically pays for itself in 7 years.

Quick Insights

Solid Investment

How this degree looks at a glance

A fast read on salary range, break-even speed, living-cost impact, and where bachelor's graduates from this school usually land.

Salary Ranges

Starting Range

$49,646

Typical Career

$66,525

Top Performers

$89,495

Estimated break-even: 7 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$444

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $5,544. Most students can comfortably afford about a $444 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.7x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.9x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in Georgia buys what costs $0.91 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

Top industries for bachelor's graduates from this school: Professional, Scientific & Technical Services, Health Care & Social Assistance, Educational Services.

Where Bachelor's Graduates from This School Work

Professional, Scientific & Technical Services 14.9%
Health Care & Social Assistance 14.0%
Educational Services 13.4%

Institution-wide industry mix for bachelor's graduates, 5 years after graduation. This is not major-specific. Source: Census PSEO Flows.

5-Year Median Salary — National Purchasing Power Equivalent

$73,508

Nominal: $66,525 in Georgia (COL 90.5% of national avg) · 10.5% higher purchasing power

10-Year Earnings Curve

Break-Even Timeline

How long until cumulative earnings advantage exceeds total college investment (tuition + opportunity cost vs. entering workforce directly after high school).

7 years to break even
Graduation 15 years

Total Investment

$155,168

4yr tuition + 4yr opportunity cost

HS Graduate Baseline

$38,792/yr

BLS 2023 median, HS diploma

View Raw Data: Median Earnings by Year
Timeframe 25th Pct. Median (50th) 75th Pct.
1 Year After Graduation $33,510 $47,243 $63,261
5 Years After Graduation $49,646 $66,525 $89,495
10 Years After Graduation $58,447 $81,952 $115,294

Source: US Census Bureau Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO), 2025 release. Earnings shown for Bachelor's degree graduates (all cohorts combined).

How We Calculate Purchasing Power

The median salary of $66,525 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in GA, which has a cost-of-living index of 90.5% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $66,525 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9050) = $73,508 National Average equivalent.

COL index source: BLS Regional Consumer Price Index & MIT Living Wage Project, 2023. Full methodology →

Career Verdict

Graduates with a degree in Business Administration and Management from Georgia State University can expect a solid earnings trajectory. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $47,243, increasing to $66,525 after five years and reaching $81,952 after ten years. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary reflects a national equivalent of $73,508.29, indicating that graduates maintain a competitive edge in the job market despite the cost of living in Georgia being slightly lower than the national average.

The top industries for graduates include Professional, Scientific & Technical Services (14.9%), Health Care & Social Assistance (14.0%), and Educational Services (13.4%). With an estimated break-even point of approximately seven years compared to a high-school-only path, the return on investment for pursuing a degree in this field appears favorable. This suggests that students can expect not only to recover their educational costs but also to benefit from enhanced career opportunities in diverse sectors.

AI-assisted editorial analysis based on Census PSEO data. Fact-checked against source data.

Compare with Another School

See how the Business Administration and Management degree at Georgia State University stacks up against another institution side-by-side.

Data sources: US Census Bureau Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO). Cost-of-living index: BLS Regional CPI & MIT Living Wage Project. Cost of attendance: IPEDS. For informational use only; data may be suppressed for small cohort sizes.

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