Best graduate degrees for having a satisfied career, Fortune reveals

Best degrees so far are STEM( Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) while worst are education and arts.

We have been seeing that after every couple of years a new professional degree gets attention and professionals try to get more and more people attracted and trained towards these degrees.

PayScale told about money making graduate degrees that lead to satisfactory careers — and those that lead to high stress and low pay.

It’s that time of year when college graduates ponder their future plans, and those heading for more higher learning put down deposits for grad school tuition. In a knowledge economy, the pay gap is the widest it’s been in a generation, between those with more education, versus those with less. 

Which degrees are the best investment? Salary may not be the sole motivation for pursuing a graduate degree, of course.

To determine the best and worst graduate degrees for jobs, Fortune consulted the careers site, PayScale. The site considered the full-range of graduate degrees, including Ph.D.s, master’s degrees, and law degrees.

The ranking is based upon these factors:

Long-term outlook for job growth, Job satisfaction scores

PayScale’s analysis finds the best graduate degrees are in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) fields, with median, mid-career salaries topping at $131,700. “The top of the list has consistently been dominated by STEM degrees, especially statistics and computer science in the last five years,” said Katie Bardaro, the director of analytics and lead economist at PayScale.

Surprisingly the “worst” graduate degrees are in the arts and education, leading to careers that bring in as little as $48,100 in mid-career, according to PayScale data.

Best Grad Degrees for Jobs

Ph.D., Statistics

Median Salary: $131,700

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 23.7%

Highly Satisfied: 71%

Low Stress: 67%

Master’s, Biostatistics

Median Salary: $113,400

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 21.3%

Highly Satisfied: 86%

Low Stress: 48%

PhD, Computer Science

Median Salary: $144,800

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 17.1%

Highly Satisfied: 80%

Low Stress: 45%

Master’s, Human Computer Interaction

Median Salary: $115,200

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 17.1%

Highly Satisfied: 72%

Low Stress: 72%

Ph.D., Physics

Median Salary: $132,400

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 15.6%

Highly Satisfied: 78%

Low Stress: 58%

Juris Doctor (JD)

Median Salary: $138,200

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 20.1%

Highly Satisfied: 71%s

Low Stress: 34%

Master’s, Telecom Engineering

Median Salary: $119,100

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 15.6%

Highly Satisfied: 88%

Low Stress: 54%

Master’s, Applied Math

Median Salary: $121,900

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 16.8%

Highly Satisfied: 67%

Low Stress: 58%

Master’s, Statistics

Median Salary: ($109,700

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 18.2%

Highly Satisfied: 80%

Low Stress: 51%

Master’s, Engineering

Median Salary: $117,200

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 19.5%

Highly Satisfied: 68%

Low Stress: 41%

Master’s, Computer Science

Median Salary: $122,100

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 16.8%

Highly Satisfied: 68%

Low Stress: 50%

Master’s, Software Engineering

Median Salary: $121,300

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 16.8

Highly Satisfied: 66%

Low Stress: 51%

Ph.D., Economics

Median Salary: $122,500

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 13.4

Percentage Who Are Highly Satisfied: 88%

Low Stress: 59%

MBA

Median Salary: $113,000

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 20%

Highly Satisfied: 72%

Low Stress: 36%

Master’s Information Science

Median Salary: $101,800

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 19.5%

Highly Satisfied: 73%

Low Stress: 43%

Worst 15 Graduate Degrees

Master’s, Interior Design

Median Salary: $69,400

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 6.0%

Highly Satisfied: 68%

Low Stress: 14%

Master’s, Educational Administration

Median Salary: $77,100

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 5.6%

Highly Satisfied: 82%

Low Stress: 22%

Master’s, Early Childhood Education

Median Salary: $48,100

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 7.8%

Highly Satisfied: 80%

Low Stress: 31%

Master’s, Criminal Justice

Median Salary: $60,500

Projected Growth, # of Jobs, by 2022: 8.3%

Highly Satisfied: 64%

Low Stress: 32%

Master’s, Reading & Literacy

Median Salary: $52,300

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 9.4%

Highly Satisfied: 82%

Low Stress: 26%

Ph.D., Educational Leadership

Median Salary: $88,500

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 6.9

Highly Satisfied: 81%

Low Stress: 19%

Master’s, Health Administration

Median Salary: $73,300

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 6.3%

Highly Satisfied: 68%

Low Stress: 40%

Master’s, Studio Art

Median Salary: $51,300

Projected Growth, # of Jobs, by 2022: 12.2%

Highly Satisfied: 62%

Low Stress: 24%

Master’s, Construction Management

Median Salary: 99,600

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 6.6%

Highly Satisfied: 82%

Low Stress: 18%

Master’s, Fine Arts

Median Salary 55,900

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 9.5

Highly Satisfied: 63%

Low Stress: 37%

Master’s, Divinity

Median Salary: $52,100

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 9.2%

Highly Satisfied: 85%

Low Stress: 36%

Master’s, Educational Leadership

Median Salary: $72,600

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 7.2%

Highly Satisfied: 80%

Low Stress: 31%

Master’s, Social Work (MSW)

Median Salary: $59,400

Projected Growth # of Jobs, by 2022: 10.4%

Highly Satisfied: 78%

Low Stress: 24%

Master’s, Leadership

Median Salary $81,600

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 7.0%

Highly Satisfied: 75%

Low Stress: 30%

Master’s, Curriculum & Instruction

Median Salary: $58,200

Projected Growth in Jobs by 2022: 8.8 %

Highly Satisfied 80%

Low Stress: 35% 

So all the aspiring graduates must take a look at this if they want a less stressful life and career ahead.

Source: Payscale