Employers are looking for a wide variety of majors, but it’s CS in particular that is associated with a high salary. Software engineering is key for many of the SV tech companies that are typically discussed here. Many positions state they require a CS major and test for CS related knowledge and skills during the interviews. For example, the average starting salaries reported in the most recent UCB survey are below. CS is far ahead of other majors.
EECS – $109k, most common job title is “Software Engineer”, most common employers are Amazon, Facebook, Google, …
CS – $107k, most common job title is “Software Engineer”, most common employers are Amazon, Facebook, Google, …
Non-CS Engineering Majors – ~$80k
Economics and Math – ~$70k
… Studies – ~$50k
Biology – ~$45k
Ivies also often show a similar pattern. For example, numbers for Cornell are below, which is usually considered the Ivy that is strongest in tech majors.
CS – $105k, most common employers are Google, Amazon, and Microsoft
Non-CS Engineering Majors – ~$75k (highest is Electrical/Computer at 90 and lowest is Biological at 55)
Economics-- ~$70k
… Studies – $50k
Biology – $50k