Payscale tracks good data on degree payoff, but they don't adjust for selection bias. I would recommend sorting by starting salary instead of mid-career salary to reduce that bias. SE and CS majors start at pretty much the same spot, but CS majors end up making a lot more probably because of that selection bias. Petroleum Engineering is indeed ridiculously lucrative right now, but this is in constant flux. Engineering degrees are riding high right now, but this could change a lot in 4 years. I would guess all the degrees below $40,000 probably have a negative ROI, and the ones between $40-45,000 could go either way. The only real surprises to me are Industrial Design and Food Science. I didn't even know food science was something you could major in.