Maritime Studies graduates earn $57,953 four years out. Related careers are growing at up to 21.8%, one of the stronger demand signals across all fields. Computer & Information Research Scientist is among the highest-growth roles in the field.
This page covers Maritime Studies as a course of study: what it costs, where it is taught, and what graduates go on to earn. It sits inside the wider field of Interdisciplinary Studies and how it pays overall, which is the better comparison if you are still choosing between subjects.
Maritime Studies is a focused area of study within Interdisciplinary Studies. Pick this and you can expect to earn around $57,953 four years out, a solid return for a focused credential. You will not have trouble finding it: 8 colleges offer this program, from community colleges to research universities. About 68 students complete it each year, most walking away with a bachelor's. The focus is on writing, analysis, and communication that transfer across industries.
Four years after finishing Maritime Studies, a typical graduate earns $57,953, near the national median for college graduates. Half of earners land somewhere between $43,089 and $71,255, so where you end up depends on the job and the employer. Do not judge the field on a starting paycheck alone: pay tends to jump in the first few years, climbing from $32,325 at one year out to $57,953 by year four. Source: College Scorecard.
What that figure means in practice depends on what the degree cost to get, which is a matter of lifetime earnings against total outlay.
Starting salaries only. Earnings in this field grow substantially in the first 3 to 5 years.
Near the national median for college graduates.
Median of per-school medians. Each reporting college counts equally, regardless of size.
Not every Maritime Studies graduate ends up in the same place. Earnings spread out a moderate amount, so know what pushes people to one end or the other. Career path divergence explains most of the range. Law, consulting, and tech-adjacent roles pull the top end up; writing, education, and nonprofit roles tend to sit near the bottom.
Solid ROI. At median 4-year earnings of $57,953 and an estimated $82,288 four-year net cost, the typical graduate reaches earnings breakeven in roughly 2.9 years.
Based on outcomes from 6 schools. Colleges with fewer than 30 graduates are excluded from national averages.
Of the 68 students who complete Maritime Studies programs each year, the majority (82%) earn a bachelor's degree. The breakdown below shows the full credential distribution.
This degree does not lock you into one job. Maritime Studies graduates show up in 8 different occupations, and Computer & Information Systems Manager pays the most at $175,140/yr median. Expand any card below to see daily responsibilities, in-demand skills, and 10-year growth projections.
The best-paid of these is what a Computer & Information Systems Manager earns and how fast the role is growing, though entry requirements vary across the list.
Only 7 colleges had enough verified data to appear here for Maritime Studies. They are sorted by graduate volume, not selectivity, so use them as a starting point rather than a ranking.
Ranked by score, that list starts with the cost and outcomes at Texas A&M University-College Station, and the rest follow the same measures.
| # | College | Graduates | Acceptance | Net Price/yr | Earnings 10yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Texas A&M University-College Station College Station, TX · Public | 21 | 57.4% | $21,315 | $72,097 |
| 2 | SUNY Maritime College Throggs Neck, NY · Public | 15 | 72.4% | $22,367 | $95,951 |
| 3 | University of West Florida Pensacola, FL · Public | 11 | 58.2% | $9,364 | $49,137 |
| 4 | University of New England Biddeford, ME · Nonprofit | 11 | 91.6% | $38,107 | $55,921 |
| 5 | East Carolina University Greenville, NC · Public | 6 | 89.2% | $15,739 | $55,146 |
| 6 | Oregon State University Corvallis, OR · Public | 2 | 77.3% | $19,604 | $64,010 |
| 7 | University of Maine Orono, ME · Public | 1 | 96.6% | $17,510 | $48,653 |
Ranked by Maritime Studies graduate volume. Scroll right to compare key stats. Read our methodology →
Decide with data, not guesswork. These tools turn the numbers on this page into a personal plan. Estimate the real cost of a Maritime Studies program, compare colleges side-by-side, weigh the long-term payoff, and find schools that match your profile.
See if a Maritime Studies degree pays off. Weighs each college's cost against the earnings its graduates actually see.
Enter a budget and see the colleges whose net price fits, with the out-of-pocket cost and likely loan load for each.
Put any 2–4 colleges side-by-side. Admissions, cost, outcomes, and earnings, all on one screen, no tab-hopping.
Answer six quick questions and see your best-fit colleges ranked by budget, field of study, and what matters most to you.
The data on Maritime Studies shows 4 measurable strengths and 2 real trade-offs. All points are sourced from College Scorecard earnings, BLS projections, and IPEDS graduate counts.
The highest-earning college major out-pays the lowest by a factor of two and a half. The full ranking of all 38 fields by median graduate earnings, with job growth alongside.
A popular claim holds that the applied engineering-tech degree pays more than the theoretical one. Across every program, engineering wins by about $10,000.
Across 88 STEM programs the top one out-earns the bottom by $65,000 a year. Operations research pays $122,531; environmental design pays $57,461.
Browse our full directory: every college, major, program, and career we track, all built from verified government data.
Scout uses AI and can make mistakes. Verify important numbers on the page.
