by our College Data Analytics Team
[Journalism](/majors/communication-journalism-media/journalism/) is a field where your choice of school can shape what you earn after graduation. The highest-paying schools turn a journalism degree into the strongest early-career earnings.
To produce this 2026 ranking, College Factual evaluated 3 schools on the early-career earnings of their journalism graduates.
What’s on this page:
Below are the schools whose journalism graduates go on to earn the most.
Our analysis ranked Indiana University Bloomington the top school for journalism graduate earnings in Indiana. Located in the city of Bloomington, Indiana University Bloomington is a public institution. After graduating, journalism degree recipients from Indiana University Bloomington typically earn about $65,840 annually.
Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis came in at #2 on our 2026 list of the highest-paying journalism schools. Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis is a public school located in the city of Indianapolis. Journalism graduates of Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis earn a median of about $46,060 a year early in their careers.
Ball State University produces some of the highest-paid graduates in journalism, landing the #3 spot this year. Ball State University is a public school located in the city of Muncie. After graduating, journalism degree recipients from Ball State University typically earn about $54,057 annually.
This list is compiled by College Factual, 2026 edition. The methodology measures the salaries journalism graduates go on to earn early in their careers, 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.
More about our data sources and methodologies.