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Urban Studies/Affairs at Portland State University

Portland, OR · Public · Bachelor's Degree
64 /100
DegreeWorth Score (Base Case)
63
Optimistic
64
Base Case
62
Pessimistic
Earnings $45,870/yr (12% vs median)
AI Risk High (37% exposed)
Job Market Very Large (111,900 openings/yr)

How AI Changes the Outlook

Three scenarios based on how aggressively AI disrupts the career paths available to Urban Studies/Affairs graduates.

Optimistic
No Disruption		 Base Case
Gradual AI		 Pessimistic
Aggressive AI
10-Year Earnings $526K $454K $371K
Earnings Multiple (In-State) 11.7x 10.1x 8.3x
Earnings Multiple (Out-of-State) 4.4x 3.8x 3.1x
Viable Career Paths 4 of 4 4 of 4 4 of 4
DegreeWorth Score 63 64 62

10-Year Earnings Projection

*Year 1 uses actual reported earnings. Scenarios diverge as AI impact compounds over time.

4-Year Tuition (In-State)
$44,952
Out-of-state: $120,552
Median Debt at Graduation
$25,000
6.5 months of Year 1 earnings

Career Paths

Where Urban Studies/Affairs graduates typically work. Raw data — no blending. The scenarios above model how these factors interact. This field has roughly 111,900 combined openings per year.

Career Path Wage Openings/yr Growth AI Risk
Managers, all other $136,550 106,700 +4.5% 47%
Sociologists $101,690 300 +3.6% 54%
Urban and regional planners $83,720 3,400 +3.4% 48%
Social sciences teachers, postsecondary, all other $75,040 1,500 +1.7% 0%

Compare & Explore

Urban Studies/Affairs at Other Schools

University of California-Berkeley ($58,171) San Francisco State University ($50,008) Brown University ($48,731) University of Washington-Seattle Campus ($47,585) University of Washington-Tacoma Campus ($47,585) California State University-Northridge ($46,826) University of Nevada-Las Vegas ($46,712) Rutgers University-Camden ($44,263)

Other Majors at Portland State University

Computer Engineering ($87,259) Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering ($82,853) Computer Science ($78,669) Mechanical Engineering ($73,079) Civil Engineering ($67,509) Physics ($62,749) Accounting and Related Services ($58,069) Finance and Financial Management Services ($52,859)

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the DegreeWorth Score for Urban Studies/Affairs at Portland State University?
This program scores 64/100 in the Base Case scenario, factoring in earnings, AI disruption risk, job market size, and earnings multiple. The score ranges from 63 (optimistic) to 62 (pessimistic) depending on AI's impact.
How does AI affect Urban Studies/Affairs career prospects?
We model three scenarios: Optimistic (no disruption), Base Case (gradual AI adoption), and Pessimistic (aggressive AI displacement). In the base case, Urban Studies/Affairs graduates retain 4 of 4 viable career paths. 10-year earnings range from $370,860 (pessimistic) to $525,847 (optimistic).
How many job openings are there for Urban Studies/Affairs graduates?
The career paths mapped to Urban Studies/Affairs have roughly 111,900 combined job openings per year nationally, making this a very large job market.
Is Urban Studies/Affairs at Portland State University worth it?
In the Base Case, this degree earns 10.1x its in-state tuition over 10 years. Even in the Pessimistic scenario, the multiple is 8.3x. The spread between scenarios tells you how sensitive this degree is to AI disruption.
Data: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (earnings, debt), Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024-2034 (employment projections), OpenAI GPTs-are-GPTs research (AI task exposure), Felten et al. AIOE. Scenarios use a continuous weighting function combining AI exposure and BLS job growth projections. "Earnings Multiple" is total 10-year projected earnings divided by tuition — not a discounted financial ROI. Last updated 2025.