Acoustics Degrees (2026 stats)
TL;DR
Acoustics — headline outcomes are in the stats below. Median in-state published tuition is about $10,104.
Key Statistics
Acoustics: what the data shows
Common questions about acoustics degrees, answered from IPEDS, College Scorecard, BLS OEWS, and O*NET in this repository—not program marketing copy.
What is a acoustics degree?
A Acoustics program is classified under NCES CIP 40.0809 in the Physics field family (40.08).
A program that focuses on the scientific study of sound, and the properties and behavior of acoustic wave phenomena under different conditions. Includes instruction in wave theory, the acoustic wave equation, energy transformation, vibration phenomena, sound reflection and transmission, scattering and surface wave phenomena, singularity expansion theory, ducting, and applications to specific research problems such as underwater acoustics, crystallography, and health diagnostics
IPEDS counted 95 completions for this CIP in the survey year in our extract.
Types of acoustics degrees and related programs
Other NCES program codes in the 40.08 family with pages on EDsmart Data:
- Atomic/Molecular Physics (CIP 40.0802)
- Condensed Matter and Materials Physics (CIP 40.0808)
- Elementary Particle Physics (CIP 40.0804)
- Nuclear Physics (CIP 40.0806)
- Optics/Optical Sciences (CIP 40.0807)
- Physics, General (CIP 40.0801)
- Plasma and High-Temperature Physics (CIP 40.0805)
- Theoretical and Mathematical Physics (CIP 40.0810)
How long does it take to get a acoustics degree?
Award levels reported to IPEDS for CIP 40.0809 in our file:
- 95 Bachelor's (56.9% of IPEDS total)—typically four years
- 67 Master's (40.1% of IPEDS total)—one to two years beyond a bachelor's
- 5 Doctorate (3.0% of IPEDS total)—varies by program
Time to completion depends on enrollment intensity and transfer credits; figures above describe credential type, not calendar time for every student.
Is a acoustics degree worth it?
College Scorecard national medians for the Physics bachelor's program family: median debt $41,101, median earnings $76,786 four years after enrollment. Debt-to-earnings proxy: 0.89.
About 9.1% of graduates in this field family were not working and not enrolled one year after completion in Scorecard's national program medians.
Among schools reporting in our Scorecard extract, median published in-state tuition is $10,104 and median net price is $17,716.
We do not score "worth" on opinion—compare debt, earnings, wages for mapped occupations, and completion data above against your cost and career target.
Institutions
Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Acoustics and the types of students that study this field.
Tuition Costs for Common Institutions
$10,104 Median In-State Public
$53,350 Median Out of State Private
Tuition costs for Acoustics majors are, on average, $10,104 for in-state public colleges, and $53,350 for out of state private colleges.
Tuition costs comparison for Acoustics programs.
Degrees Awarded Over Time
100,000 Total Degrees Awarded in 2023
This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Acoustics from 2015 to 2023.
Historical trend of degrees awarded in Acoustics.
Top 5 Schools by Enrollment
| # | School | State | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | AZ | 64,674 |
| 2 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | AZ | 64,674 |
| 3 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | AZ | 64,674 |
| 4 | Texas A&M University-College Station | TX | 59,615 |
| 5 | Texas A&M University-College Station | TX | 59,615 |
Schools with the largest enrollment offering Acoustics programs.
Top 5 Most Affordable Tuition
| # | School | State | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Antelope Valley Community College District | CA | $1,124 |
| 2 | Compton College | CA | $1,142 |
| 3 | El Camino Community College District | CA | $1,144 |
| 4 | San Diego City College | CA | $1,146 |
| 5 | San Diego Mesa College | CA | $1,146 |
Schools with the lowest tuition costs for Acoustics programs.
Top 5 Lowest Net Price
| # | School | State | Net Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Canada College | CA | $32 |
| 2 | College of the Sequoias | CA | $480 |
| 3 | College of San Mateo | CA | $536 |
| 4 | Imperial Valley College | CA | $1,115 |
| 5 | Skyline College | CA | $1,738 |
Schools with the lowest average net price for Acoustics programs.
Graduation Rates
Graduation rate data is not available for this degree program.
Graduation/completion rates for Acoustics programs across institutions.
Where students complete this major (IPEDS)
Bachelor's-level completions (IPEDS Completions, award level 5) summed by institution state. State is taken from IPEDS Directory (HD2023) for each reporting institution.
Geographic concentration
The largest number of reported bachelor's completions for Acoustics is in IL (51 completions). That state represents about 53.7% of U.S. bachelor's completions reported for this CIP in the IPEDS file we use.
Among states, the highest concentration relative to all bachelor's degrees awarded in-state is IL (0.04% of that state's bachelor's completions).
Top states by count of bachelor's completions for this CIP (IPEDS).
| State | Bachelor's completions (this CIP) | % of U.S. total (this CIP) | % of state's all bachelor's |
|---|---|---|---|
| IL | 51 | 53.7% | 0.04% |
| NY | 43 | 45.3% | 0.02% |
| UT | 1 | 1.1% | 0.00% |
Related specializations
Other NCES program codes in the 40.08 CIP family with dedicated pages on EDsmart Data.
- Atomic/Molecular Physics CIP 40.0802
- Condensed Matter and Materials Physics CIP 40.0808
- Elementary Particle Physics CIP 40.0804
- Nuclear Physics CIP 40.0806
- Optics/Optical Sciences CIP 40.0807
- Physics, General CIP 40.0801
- Plasma and High-Temperature Physics CIP 40.0805
- Theoretical and Mathematical Physics CIP 40.0810
Degree Levels (IPEDS)
Completions reported to IPEDS for CIP 40.0809 in the survey year used in our extract (167 total across levels below).
- 95 Bachelor's (56.9% of IPEDS total)
- 67 Master's (40.1% of IPEDS total)
- 5 Doctorate (3.0% of IPEDS total)
Source: IPEDS Completions (c2024_a), summed by award level for this CIP.
Program outcomes (College Scorecard)
National medians across bachelor's programs in the Physics CIP family (12 programs reporting debt). Not specific to every Acoustics graduate.
- $41,101 median federal loan debt among completers
- $76,786 median earnings four years after enrollment (national program median)
- 0.89 debt-to-earnings ratio (Scorecard proxy)
- 9.1% of graduates not working and not enrolled one year out (program cohort)
Source: College Scorecard program-level outcomes aggregated by 4-digit CIP family.
Employment
Wages and industry mix below use BLS OEWS data for occupations linked to this major in our mapping—not a graduate earnings survey.
Yearly Income for Common Jobs
$N/A Average Wage in Workforce
The average salary for Acoustics majors is $N/A.
Average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Acoustics majors.
Occupations by Share
N/A 2023 Workforce
The number of Acoustics graduates in the workforce has been growing.
Various jobs filled by those with a major in Acoustics by share of the total number of graduates.
Diversity
Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Acoustics in the United States.
Workforce Age
N/A Average Age in 2023
This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Acoustics.
Age distribution for Acoustics degree holders in the workforce.
Gender Distribution
Counts below are bachelor's-level completions only (IPEDS Completions, award level 5).
95 Total Degrees Awarded
68 Male (71.58%)
27 Female (28.42%)
Gender distribution of Acoustics degree recipients.
Race and Ethnicity Distribution
Counts below are bachelor's-level completions only (IPEDS Completions, award level 5).
52 White (54.74%)
20 Hispanic or Latino (21.05%)
7 Asian (7.37%)
4 Two or More Races (4.21%)
3 Black or African American (3.16%)
Racial and ethnic distribution of Acoustics degree recipients.
Degrees Awarded
The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Acoustics are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.
Distribution of degree types awarded in Acoustics.
Skills
Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Acoustics field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Required Skills
Acoustics majors need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Active Listening, and Reading Comprehension.
Rating of how necessary various skills are for Acoustics majors.
Skills Bar Chart
This bar chart shows the same information as the radar chart, displaying the importance of each skill.
Skill importance ratings for Acoustics majors.
About
A program that focuses on the scientific study of sound, and the properties and behavior of acoustic wave phenomena under different conditions. Includes instruction in wave theory, the acoustic wave equation, energy transformation, vibration phenomena, sound reflection and transmission, scattering and surface wave phenomena, singularity expansion theory, ducting, and applications to specific research problems such as underwater acoustics, crystallography, and health diagnostics
In 2023, 100,000 degrees were awarded across all undergraduate and graduate programs in Acoustics.
CIP Code
40.0809 - Acoustics
What the data shows
At the program-family level, College Scorecard reports median debt of $41,101 for bachelor's completers and median earnings near $76,786, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.89. Those figures describe national program cohorts in this CIP family—not every individual Acoustics graduate.
About 9.1% of graduates in this field family were not working and not enrolled one year after completion in Scorecard's national program medians. That is a program-level mobility signal, not a national underemployment rate.
Men earned 29.7% of 175 Acoustics completions in the IPEDS file used here.
Published tuition medians in College Scorecard land at $10,104 in-state at public colleges and $53,350 at private institutions for programs in this field.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard dataset, IPEDS completion data, and Bureau of Labor Statistics employment data.
All financial figures are adjusted for inflation and represent the most recent available data. Employment and wage data are from the most recent Census Bureau ACS PUMS estimates.