Quad
Kansas State UniversityManhattan, KS · Public

Academics

Majors and faculty

The most popular major is Animal Sciences, General (6% of graduates). 19 students for every faculty member, more than at 87% of colleges. 90% of faculty are full-time. Spends $12,603 a year on instruction per student.

Most popular majors

3,261 bachelor's degrees, 2024–25 graduates

The top 5 programs account for 23% of graduates; 93 programs in 27 fields awarded at least one.

  1. Animal Sciences, General 01.09016.1% 200
    Graduates in this field earn $50,941 4 years out
  2. Marketing/Marketing Management, General 52.14015.2% 168
    Graduates in this field earn $69,837 4 years out
  3. Elementary Education and Teaching 13.12024.2% 137
    Graduates in this field earn $46,562 4 years out
  4. Mechanical Engineering 14.19014.0% 132
    Graduates in this field earn $88,533 4 years out
  5. Finance, General 52.08013.7% 120
    Graduates in this field earn $75,705 4 years out

Fastest-growing field: Biology, 3.8% → 8.8% of graduates since 2014–15 (286 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

  1. Computer and Information Sciences, General$107,194 4 yrs out

    1 year after completion: $76,385

    4 years after completion$107,194
    National median: $92,374Above typical

    Median federal debt: $25,000 · 211 graduates, two most recent years combined

  2. Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering$95,640 4 yrs out

    1 year after completion: $78,758

    4 years after completion$95,640
    National median: $100,647Below typical

    Median federal debt: $21,000 · 70 graduates, two most recent years combined

  3. Industrial Engineering$93,098 4 yrs out

    1 year after completion: $77,724

    4 years after completion$93,098
    National median: $98,442Below typical

    Median federal debt: $24,399 · 85 graduates, two most recent years combined

  4. Chemical Engineering$92,068 4 yrs out

    1 year after completion: $77,492

    4 years after completion$92,068
    National median: $98,158Below typical

    Median federal debt: $24,000 · 92 graduates, two most recent years combined

  5. Construction Engineering Technology/Technician$91,809 4 yrs out

    1 year after completion: $74,253

    4 years after completion$91,809
    National median: $93,843About typical

    4 years out, Pell: $93,763 · Non-Pell: Too few graduates to report(an older graduating class than the figure above — see the (i) for why)

    Median federal debt: $27,000 · 125 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.

Students per faculty member vs. every college19 to 1
19 to 1
← Fewer students per facultymore students per faculty member than 87% of 1,892More students per faculty →

The college also reports 19 to 1 in its Common Data Set (18,040 students, 952 faculty).

Not the average class size: faculty also teach graduate students and do research, and large lectures can sit alongside small seminars.

Class sizes

45%

of classes have fewer than 20 students; 12% have 50 or more

Under 20 students 20 or moreStudents per class section
Undergraduate class sections by number of students
StudentssectionsShare
2–929216%
10–1953929%
20–2941222%
30–3921412%
40–491679%
50–991458%
100+794%

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
  • Distance learning
  • Double major
  • Dual enrollment
  • English as a Second Language
  • Domestic exchange program
  • Honors program
  • Independent study
  • Internships
  • Liberal arts/career combination
  • Teacher certification
  • Study abroad
  • Undergraduate research

Requires coursework in arts, English composition, history, humanities, math, philosophy, a natural science, and social science.

Full-time faculty90%
National median: 67%Above typical
Average faculty salary

$97,526

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 public colleges: public and private colleges report finances on different accounting forms that aren't comparable. Many public universities' endowments sit mostly in a separate foundation this survey doesn't count, so this likely understates what's actually available.

Instruction spending per student$12,603
$12,603
← Lessmore than 65% of 557More →
Endowment per student$59,303
$59,303
← Lessmore than 92% of 537More →

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;Kansas State University Common Data Set 2025–26, Fall 2025;Kansas State University Common Data Set 2025–26, 2025–26;IPEDS Institutional Characteristics survey (athletics, programs, services, religious affiliation), 2025–26About the data(retrieved 2026-10-12)