Academics
Majors and faculty
The most popular major is Finance, General (18% of graduates). 12 students for every faculty member, fewer than at 59% of colleges. 100% of faculty are full-time. Spends $15,558 a year on instruction per student.
Most popular majors
1,207 bachelor's degrees, 2024–25 graduates
The top 5 programs account for 62% of graduates; 41 programs in 19 fields awarded at least one.
- Finance, General 52.080118% 221Graduates in this field earn $106,663 4 years out
- Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse 51.380118% 214Graduates in this field earn $101,831 4 years out
- Marketing/Marketing Management, General 52.140110% 121Graduates in this field earn $86,740 4 years out
- Accounting 52.03018.0% 97Graduates in this field earn $110,586 4 years out
- Psychology, General 42.01017.8% 94Graduates in this field earn $70,211 4 years out
Fastest-growing field: Business, 32% → 42% of graduates since 2014–15 (504 graduates in 2024–25).
Source:IPEDS Completions survey (degrees awarded by field), 2014–15 to 2024–25About the data(built 2026-10-12; CPI retrieved 2026-10-12)
Bachelor's degrees awarded July through June, by federal program name (), which can differ from what the college calls a major. A double major counts once, under the ; its other field is a . Earnings are College Scorecard's median for graduates of the program's broader field (), 4 years after completion; see Top-earning majors below.
Top-earning majors here
By earnings 4 years after completion
Economics$120,303 4 yrs out
1 year after completion: $74,023
4 years after completion$120,303National median: $82,686Above typical4 years out, Pell: Too few graduates to report · Non-Pell: $72,374(an older graduating class than the figure above — see the (i) for why)
Median federal debt: $23,250 · 94 graduates, two most recent years combined
Accounting and Related Services$110,586 4 yrs out
1 year after completion: $71,747
4 years after completion$110,586National median: $76,194Above typical4 years out, Pell: $97,369 · Non-Pell: $87,323(an older graduating class than the figure above — see the (i) for why)
Median federal debt: $26,633 · 236 graduates, two most recent years combined
Finance and Financial Management Services$106,663 4 yrs out
1 year after completion: $62,952
4 years after completion$106,663National median: $83,343Above typical4 years out, Pell: $97,858 · Non-Pell: $99,005(an older graduating class than the figure above — see the (i) for why)
Median federal debt: $27,000 · 437 graduates, two most recent years combined
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing$101,831 4 yrs out
1 year after completion: $91,418
4 years after completion$101,831National median: $88,910Above typical4 years out, Pell: $85,038 · Non-Pell: $92,945(an older graduating class than the figure above — see the (i) for why)
Median federal debt: $25,000 · 410 graduates, two most recent years combined
International Business$101,411 4 yrs out
1 year after completion: Too few graduates to report
4 years after completion$101,411National median: $73,201Above typical4 years out, Pell: Too few graduates to report · Non-Pell: $85,660(an older graduating class than the figure above — see the (i) for why)
Median federal debt: $27,000 · 37 graduates, two most recent years combined
Bachelor's programs only, among graduates who received federal financial aid and were working (not enrolled in school) in the measurement year.
The college also reports 12 to 1 in its Common Data Set (4,689 students, 396 faculty).
Not the average class size: faculty also teach graduate students and do research, and large lectures can sit alongside small seminars.
Class sizes
41%
of classes have fewer than 20 students; 2% have 50 or more
| Students | sections | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 2–9 | 105 | 10% |
| 10–19 | 343 | 31% |
| 20–29 | 501 | 46% |
| 30–39 | 117 | 11% |
| 40–49 | 8 | 1% |
| 50–99 | 17 | 2% |
| 100+ | 0 | 0% |
This counts class sections, not students: a lecture of 300 is one section, so a student is more likely to sit in a large class than the share of sections suggests. Labs and discussion sections are counted separately and left out here.
Programs & curriculum
- Accelerated program
- Cross-registration
- Distance learning
- Double major
- Domestic exchange program
- Honors program
- Independent study
- Internships
- Liberal arts/career combination
- Student-designed major
- Teacher certification
- Study abroad
Requires coursework in arts, English composition, a foreign language, history, humanities, intensive writing, math, philosophy, a natural science, and social science.
$119,683
9-month equated, all ranks combined. Pay tracks local cost of living as much as a college's generosity.
Spending and endowment
Fiscal 2023–24. Compared only against other private nonprofit colleges: public and private colleges report finances on different accounting forms that aren't comparable.
Sources:IPEDS Completions survey (degrees awarded by field), 2024–25 graduates;College Scorecard Field of Study data, most recent release;IPEDS Fall Enrollment survey (part D), Fall 2024;IPEDS Salaries survey (SAL, instructional staff, all ranks), Fall 2024;College Scorecard, Fall 2024;IPEDS Finance survey, derived per-student figures, 2023–24;Fairfield University Common Data Set 2022–23, Fall 2022;Fairfield University Common Data Set 2022–23, 2022–23;IPEDS Institutional Characteristics survey (athletics, programs, services, religious affiliation), 2025–26About the data(retrieved 2026-10-12)
