Best colleges for Applied Mathematics in California
Program-level earnings — not school prestige — rank these. Among the California programs in the federal field-of-study file, University of California-Berkeley leads: its Applied Mathematics graduates earn a median $118,414 four years after finishing, against the field's $91,532 national median. (Scorecard field-of-study, 2026.)
| # | College | Grad earnings, 4 yrs | Vs field median |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of California-Berkeley | $118,414 | +$26,882 |
| 2 | University of California-Santa Barbara | $109,360 | +$17,828 |
| 3 | University of California-Los Angeles | $103,887 | +$12,355 |
How big is the earnings gap between California Applied Mathematics programs?
$14,527 separates the top and bottom of this list — $118,414 at University of California-Berkeley against $103,887 at University of California-Los Angeles, four years after finishing. Same field, same state, same federal measure: where you study moves pay by that much.
Do California Applied Mathematics graduates earn more than the national median?
The state's strongest program pays $26,882 above the $91,532 national median for the field. Program-level medians come from federal tax records of graduates who received aid, so they track actual pay rather than advertised salaries.