Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication: degree ROI, salary & best colleges
Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication graduates earn a median $63,560 four years after finishing — $15,200/yr above the $48,360 high-school baseline. At a typical $16,906/yr net price ($67,624 over four years), that pays back in about 4.4 years. Federal data pools 408 bachelor's programs graduating roughly 16,690 students a year. (Scorecard field-of-study, 2026 · our math.)
Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication ranks #94 of 202 bachelor's fields by earnings — pays more than 54% of majors.
| # | College | State | Grad earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Syracuse University | NY | $90,535 |
| 2 | Southern Methodist University | TX | $89,330 |
| 3 | University of Southern California | CA | $87,946 |
| 4 | George Washington University | DC | $85,459 |
| 5 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | IL | $83,451 |
| 6 | University of Miami | FL | $82,999 |
| 7 | Pepperdine University | CA | $81,417 |
| 8 | University of San Francisco | CA | $81,285 |
| 9 | Brigham Young University | UT | $80,841 |
| 10 | The University of Texas at Austin | TX | $80,221 |
| 11 | Chapman University | CA | $80,139 |
| 12 | Miami University-Oxford | OH | $79,710 |
College Scorecard field-of-study (2026), program-level median earnings for this CIP · our ranking.
How we compute this. Earnings are the national median for graduates of this field measured 1 and 4 years after completion (Scorecard field-of-study, bachelor's). Premium = 4-year earnings − the $48,360 high-school baseline. Payback = a representative 4-year net cost (median college net price × 4) ÷ premium. Field medians blend every school — a specific program can pay far more or less. Full method on the methodology page; the field ranking is on ROI by major.