A total of 387 participants completed the 2019 Survey of Program Graduates. These individuals identified themselves as having completed or being in the process of completing a video-game-based program at a post-secondary institution. The participants included both undergraduate and graduate students.
For those based in the United States, the average salary of all employed survey participants was $61,000. For full-time workers, the average salary was $68,000. This is significantly higher than the median salary of all American workers, which is reported to be $36,300. This average includes all workers, regardless of education level.
Compared with workers with similar education outcomes, game program alumni seemed to earn slightly more, though exact comparisons proved challenging. For example, respondents between 22 and 30 years of age earned an average of $57,500 per year. In comparison, starting salaries for all post- secondary graduates in the US in 2018 were reported as $50,390.
Across the survey sample, women on average earned $61,750. Men, on average, earned $59,730.
Salaries steadily increased, except for the oldest cohort. For example, the youngest cohort of respondents (17-21 years) earned an average salary of $40,000, while those between the ages of 31- 40 earned approximately $76,200.