Construction Management at California State University-East Bay

Cal State East Bay's Construction Management graduates are hitting the ground running with nearly $100,000 in first-year earnings—well above the national median of $73,000 and competitive with California's top programs. While the debt figure of roughly $24,000 is estimated from similar Cal State programs (the graduate sample here was too small for the DOE to publish actual debt data), it aligns closely with national norms for this major and suggests a debt-to-earnings ratio of just 0.24—meaning graduates could pay off their loans in under three months of gross income.

The slight earnings dip to $97,000 by year four isn't necessarily alarming in construction management, where first-year salaries can include overtime or project bonuses that vary year to year. What matters more is that these graduates are entering a field where they're immediately employable at strong wages. At 60th percentile in California, the program performs solidly among state peers, though it's worth noting Cal Poly SLO produces similar outcomes at a similar price point.

For families concerned about cost versus payoff, the estimated numbers here suggest a program delivering professional outcomes at a public university price. The uncertainty around debt shouldn't be a dealbreaker—even if actual borrowing runs higher than the estimate, the earnings still position graduates to manage it comfortably in a field with steady demand.