ROI Major

Fishing and Fisheries Sciences and Management at Texas A & M University at Galveston

TX · Bachelor's Degree · CIP 03.03

Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Fishing and Fisheries Sciences and Management degree from Texas A & M University at Galveston earn a median salary of $50,767 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in TX, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $55,122. The degree typically pays for itself in 11.4 years.

Quick Insights

Slow Burn / High Debt Risk

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

$39,196

Typical Career

$50,767

Top Performers

$84,610

Estimated break-even: 11.4 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$338

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $4,231. Most students can comfortably afford about a $338 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.3x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.7x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in Texas buys what costs $0.92 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

Top industries for bachelor's graduates from this school: Transportation & Warehousing, Professional, Scientific & Technical Services, Educational Services.

Where Bachelor's Graduates from This School Work

Transportation & Warehousing 20.8%
Professional, Scientific & Technical Services 16.4%
Educational Services 13.1%

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

$55,122

Nominal: $50,767 in Texas (COL 92.1% of national avg) · 8.6% 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).

11.4 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 $25,712 $33,040 $42,776
5 Years After Graduation $39,196 $50,767 $84,610
10 Years After Graduation $51,223 $64,930 $89,880

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 $50,767 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in TX, which has a cost-of-living index of 92.1% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $50,767 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9210) = $55,122 National Average equivalent.

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

Career Verdict

Graduates in Fishing and Fisheries Sciences and Management from Texas A & M University at Galveston experience a positive earnings trajectory. The median earnings one year after graduation stand at $33,040, which increases to $50,767 after five years and reaches $64,930 after ten years. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary equivalent nationally is approximately $55,121.61, indicating that graduates can expect a competitive salary relative to their peers across the country, especially considering Texas's lower cost of living index at 0.921.

The top industries for graduates include Transportation & Warehousing (20.8%), Professional, Scientific & Technical Services (16.4%), and Educational Services (13.1%). The estimated break-even point compared to a high-school-only path is approximately 11.4 years, suggesting that while the investment in education may take over a decade to pay off, the long-term benefits in terms of earnings and career opportunities in these sectors can be substantial. Overall, the degree offers a reasonable return on investment, particularly for those committed to careers in fisheries and related fields.

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

Compare with Another School

See how the Fishing and Fisheries Sciences and Management degree at Texas A & M University at Galveston 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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