What the IPEDS & College Scorecard Data Shows for Social Sciences, General
Social Sciences, General is tracked across 165 U.S. postsecondary institutions in the College Scorecard field-of-study file, which links CIP code classifications from IPEDS to Treasury earnings records. This profile covers the associate's credential level specifically, because the Department of Education reports program-level outcomes separately for associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral awards. The CIP (Classification of Instructional Programs) taxonomy lets analysts roll up specialties into broader families, which is why earnings medians across schools can be compared on a common basis.
Across all reporting institutions, the mean of school-level medians is $41,364, calculated from 44 schools with published earnings data. The earnings distribution stretches from $14,627 at the low end to $58,928 at the top, with a 25th-75th percentile band between $38,977 and $47,624 around a median of $43,965. The top-reporting institution in this program is Ohlone College at $58,928. These numbers reflect earnings measured roughly a year after completion, using Social Security Administration tax records linked to federal financial aid applicants.
Variation across schools matters more than a single national figure. Completers counts reported per school indicate how many graduates’ earnings feed the median, which means small programs produce more volatile numbers. Median debt at the program level, when paired with earnings, yields a debt-to-earnings ratio that is the College Scorecard’s standard affordability signal – ratios under 1.0 indicate earnings exceed cumulative debt. Use the school-by-school table to spot institutions where Social Sciences, General graduates out-earn peers at comparable cost, and to surface gainful-employment patterns that only become visible at the CIP-code level.
East Los Angeles College accounts for 11.9% of all Social Sciences, General associate's credential graduates
That concentration — well above the 5% national median for largest-entity share means Social Sciences, General-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. That school produced 1009 graduates in the most recent cohort, anchoring a meaningful slice of national supply for this field. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Social Sciences, General associate's credential median earnings varies 4.0× across entities
Social Sciences, General associate's credential median earnings ranges from $14,627 (lowest) to $58,928 (highest), a spread of $44,301. That ratio is among the widest observed and reflects extreme earnings stratification across institutions, graduates of the same field can earn dramatically different starting salaries depending on the school’s reputation, regional employer mix, and selectivity. Earnings are measured roughly one year after completion using IRS records linked to federal aid recipients (see https://www.irs.gov/) - not all completers are captured, but the school-level medians correlate strongly with longer-term earnings trajectories.
Social Sciences, General associate's credential median debt varies 3.2× across entities
Social Sciences, General associate's credential median debt ranges from $6,775 (lowest) to $21,405 (highest), a spread of $14,630. That spread is wider than typical and predicts noticeable gaps in service quality between the highest and lowest areas. Median debt counts only those students who borrowed federal loans, students who paid out-of-pocket or received institutional grants are excluded from the borrower median, which can flatter low-debt schools.
Social Sciences, General debt-to-earnings ratio is 0.27 — well below typical (typically associated with unusually small scale or exceptionally high per-unit investment)
debt-to-earnings ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: this ratio uses federal loan principal, not all education debt, private loans, parent PLUS loans not in the borrower’s name, and institutional debt are excluded Values this far below typical often correlate with unusually small scale or population characteristics rather than higher resource budgets per se — worth checking whether the underlying denominator is itself an outlier.
Earnings data comes from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard Field of Study file. Median earnings represent graduates who received federal financial aid, drawn from U.S. Treasury tax records linked to federal student aid applicants. Completers count and debt figures reflect program-level data reported through IPEDS. Data is updated annually.