The age-old question for MBA students and prospective students is often: What will the return on my investment be? How much will I get paid after school? There’s certainly no shortage of requests on message boards including Poets & Quants, Payscale, and Monster about this very topic.
While the value of an MBA is not measured by the salary increase alone (more on this here), increased earning potential remains an undeniable benefit of pursuing a business degree.
Just a few weeks ago, the Financial Times shared this year’s business school rankings; post-MBA salaries were a major factor in each school’s score, and the ROI of an MBA was extremely high.
For instance, Harvard, Wharton, and MIT MBA grads are making over $245K on average three years after graduating, and if you look further, each of these schools reported salary increases for graduates of over 100%. Any sentiment about MBAs being “taboo” stems from social media banter (often by those who may not have been accepted to top business schools themselves) or one-off stories rather than any valid data on the true ROI of an MBA. Clearly, an MBA continues to be one of the top investments young professionals can make, particularly during a time when generous scholarships are ripe for the taking.
All that being said, many candidates wonder which fields pay the most!
Below, Personal MBA Coach analyzed some of the top schools’ employment reports to give you an overview of top MBA salaries by industry.
Top MBA Salaries By Industry
Legal Services
Using Wharton as an example, 2025 graduates within legal services reported the highest median salary, $235,000. It is worth noting that only 2.5% of the class of 2025 pursued this industry. Chicago Booth reported similar results, with the highest median salary of $225,000 being paid to the class of 2025 alumni in Law (4.5% of the class).
Finance
With a median salary of $200,000, finance (pursed by 33% of alumni) was the highest paying industry for 2025 Stanford GSB graduates. This includes graduates pursuing PE jobs ($200,000) as well as Investment Management & Hedge Funds and Venture Capital ($212,000 median salary each).
Consulting
MIT Sloan reported that for the class of 2025, the highest median base salary of $190,000 went to alumni who pursued consulting (32.3% of the class of 2025). Yale SOM reported similar data for its class of 2025, with 36% of graduates joining the consulting industry, earning a median base salary of $190,000.
Healthcare
Healthcare salaries were also strong. For example, Stanford GSB reported an average salary of $183,000 for the 5% of class of 2025 graduates who pursued healthcare careers. For MIT Sloan, the average 2025 healthcare salary was $160,000.
Manufacturing
Chicago Booth and Wharton 2025 graduates pursuing manufacturing earned $160,000 and $155,000, respectively. Meanwhile, MIT Sloan reported a much higher average salary of $180,000 for its graduates who went into Transportation, Equipment, Defense, and Warehouse Automation.
Technology
Unsurprisingly, the technology industry also rewarded MBA graduates handsomely. Stanford GSB reported an average salary of $185,000 for graduates who pursued a career in technology. Wharton technology graduates earned $164,250 while MIT Sloan graduates pursuing tech earned $165,000.
Energy
Energy is another industry popular among top MBA programs’ alums. Wharton reported an average salary of $165,000 for class of 2025 graduates working in the energy space. Furthermore, energy is the third highest paying industry, with a $155,000 average salary for Yale SOM class of 2025 graduates.
Each of these schools has a round 3 deadline in a little over a month, so if applying to business school this year is important to you, do not waste any time—reach out today!
Plus, this is a great time to get started on your 2026-2027 MBA applications. In fact, Personal MBA Coach has already started work with many clients planning to apply in fall 2026.
