2026 Highest Paid Horticulture Grads in the Great Lakes Region

[Horticulture](/majors/agriculture-ag-operations/horticulture/) graduates earn very different salaries depending on where they study. A top-earning program sends graduates into careers with strong starting pay.
College Factual analyzed 3 schools to build this 2026 ranking of the highest-paying horticulture schools.
What’s on this page:
2026 Highest Paid Horticulture Grads in the Great Lakes Region
Below are the schools whose horticulture graduates go on to earn the most.
Highest Paid Horticulture Graduates
Our analysis ranked Cincinnati State Technical And Community College the top school for horticulture graduate earnings in the Great Lakes Region. Set in the city of Cincinnati, Cincinnati State Technical And Community College is a public institution. Horticulture graduates of Cincinnati State Technical And Community College earn a median of about $49,941 a year early in their careers.
Ohio State University Agricultural Technical Institute produces some of the highest-paid graduates in horticulture, landing the #2 spot this year. Ohio State University Agricultural Technical Institute is a public school located in the town of Wooster. Early-career horticulture graduates from Ohio State University Agricultural Technical Institute make a median of around $42,621 per year.
Students chasing top earnings in horticulture will find them at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, which ranked #3. Southern Illinois University Carbondale is a public school located in the town of Carbondale. After graduating, horticulture degree recipients from Southern Illinois University Carbondale typically earn about $38,736 annually.
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Notes and References
This ranking is produced by College Factual, 2026 edition. Schools are ranked on the median early-career earnings of their horticulture graduates, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard field-of-study earnings and IPEDS).
Ranking method: College Major Earnings · 3 schools evaluated.
*Salary figures reflect median early-career earnings (about 5 years after graduation) and may vary by how long a person takes to complete their degree.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE), serves as the core of our data about colleges.
- Graduate earnings data comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard) field-of-study earnings.
More about our data sources and methodologies.