The highest paid associate's degree in business is business administration followed by accounting. According to PayScale, the median salary for business administration majors in March, 2011, ranges between $40,000 for individuals with less than one year of experience to as high as $50,700 for individuals with 20 years or more of experience. Graduates may be employed as an administrative assistant, office manager or an executive secretary.
The highest paid bachelor's degree awarded by a department or college of business at a university is an economics degree followed by one in finance. According to PayScale, as of March, 2011, the beginning salary for majors of economics is an average of $48,800; while the beginning salary for finance majors is an average of $47,500. Graduates may be employed as an economic analyst or consultant, financial controller, financial adviser or loan officer. According to PayScale, individuals with one to four years of experience earn an average of $45,600, while those with five to nine years of experience earn an average of $61,600.
The highest paid master's degree awarded by a department of business at a university is the Master of Business Administration (MBA). Graduates may be employed as senior financial analysts, chief financial officers (CFO), marketing directors or financial controllers. Average salary depends on such factors as industry, years of experience and employer type. According to PayScale, individuals with one to four years experience earn an average of $55,000 while those with 10 to 19 years of experience earn an average of $96,400, as of March, 2011.
According to the Advanced Collegiate Schools of Business, newly hired professors in economics earned the highest salary in 2010 at $202,500. For associate and assistant professors, new hires in finance and insurance earned the highest salary in 2010 with associate professors earning $152,000 and assistant professors earning a salary of $140,000.