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This is how much more Dallas workers earn with a graduate degree, study finds

Graduate degrees aren't in the cards for everyone.

One of the biggest decisions new college graduates face after earning their bachelor's is whether to continue their education with a graduate degree, or enter the professional world without one. The Education Data Initiative reports graduate degrees can cost between $30,000 and $120,000 after a bachelor's, so it's important to consider the financial benefits depending on an individual's chosen field of study.

In Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, graduate degree holders earn $16,859 more than they would with just a bachelor's degree, according to a new study by SmartAsset.

The average annual income of a Metroplex resident with a bachelor's degree is $65,694, the study says. Those with graduate degrees make $82,553 per year, SmartAsset says.

A graduate degree holder's salary in Dallas-Fort Worth is much higher than the national average of $72,000 per year. The study further determined that (nationally) a graduate degree nets workers $16,000 more per year than those with a bachelor's.

Those with advanced degrees from one Dallas graduate school do particularly well.

"Amid the high expenses of education and ever-changing job markets, it’s important to weigh the opportunity costs of a graduate degree with the additional earning potential," the study's author wrote. "A graduate or professional degree nets an extra $484,000 over a career, on average... This assumes a 30 year career in a medium or large metro area."

SmartAsset's study used 2021 U.S. Census Bureau 1-Year ACS S1501 data to determine the income for individuals aged 25 and older with varying professional degrees in 281 of the biggest metropolitan areas.

The Texas city where a graduate degree nets a resident the most amount of money is Midland, with a massive $24,394 difference between graduate degree and bachelor's holders. Average graduate degree pay in the West Texas city is $90,559 versus $66,165 for an individual with a bachelor's degree.

The metro that landed at the top of the national ranks is San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California. A bachelor's degree holder makes an average salary of $102,214 in the area, whereas a graduate degree holder earns more than $48,000 more, totaling $150,281.

The full report and its methodology can be found on smartasset.com.

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education rankings

4 Dallas high schools declared America's best for 2026 by U.S. News

School for the Talented and Gifted Yvonne A Ewell Townview Center

Photo by Nadia Eimandoust via Wikimedia Commons

The School for the Talented and Gifted is the No. 8 best high school in the nation.

Dallas ISD's The School for the Talented and Gifted is standing tall as one of the 10 best high schools in America, according to U.S. News and World Report's 2026-2027 Best High Schools rankings. And three more DISD schools join it in the top 50 nationwide.

Each year, U.S. News evaluates approximately 27,000 public high schools on six factors: college readiness, college curriculum breadth, state assessment proficiency, state assessment performance, underserved student performance, and graduation rates.

The highest ranking public schools provide the best educational environments where "students demonstrated outstanding outcomes above expectations in math, reading and science state assessments, earned qualifying scores on an array of college-level exams, and graduated in high proportions."

"Every student deserves a pathway to success, and that journey often begins with selecting the right school," said LaMont Jones, Ed.D., managing editor for education at U.S. News. "The 2026-2027 Best High Schools rankings empower families with the valuable data and transparency they need to help make the best educational choices for them. We are proud to offer this essential resource to help shape the next generation of college-ready students."

Top ranking Dallas schools
The School for the Talented and Gifted once again leads Texas as the No. 1 best high school and ranks No. 8 in U.S. News' national list of the best high schools. TAG also ranks as the 17th best STEM high schools in America, up from No. 33 last year.

DISD's School of Science and Engineering ranks No. 4 statewide and No. 36 nationally, and it appears as the 20th best STEM school in the U.S.

Irma Lerma Rangel Young Women's Leadership School ranks No. 6 in Texas and No. 45 nationally this year, down from No. 15 nationwide in 2025.

Judge Barefoot Sanders Law Magnet ranks No. 7 in Texas and 49th nationally, up from No. 84 last year.

Elsewhere in Dallas-Fort Worth, Mansfield Frontier High School made its U.S. News' ranking debut, ranking as the 33rd best high school in the country, and claiming the No. 3 spot in Texas.

Other Dallas-Fort Worth schools that rank among the 100 best in Texas are:

No. 13 – Trinidad Garza Early College at Mt. View, Dallas ISD
No. 14 – Grand Prairie Collegiate Institute, Grand Prairie ISD (also No. 27 in Best U.S. Charter Schools)
No. 16 – Westlake Academy, Westlake (also No. 28 in Best U.S. Charter Schools)
No. 20 – School of Health Professions, Dallas ISD
No. 23 – Uplift Education-North Hills Prep High School, Irving (also No. 37 in Best U.S. Charter Schools)
No. 26 – World Languages Institute, Fort Worth ISD
No. 27 – Imagine International Academy of North Texas, McKinney (also No. 40 in Best U.S. Charter Schools)
No. 28 – Young Women's Leadership Academy, Fort Worth ISD
No. 29 – Barack Obama Male Leadership Academy, Dallas ISD
No. 30 – Booker T. Washington SPVA, Dallas ISD
No. 35 – Marvin E. Robinson School of Business and Management, Dallas ISD
No. 36 – Grand Prairie Fine Arts Academy, Grand Prairie ISD
No. 42 – Highland Park High School, Highland Park ISD
No. 47 – Rosie Sorrells Education and Social Services High School, Dallas ISD
No. 49 – Independence High School, Frisco ISD
No. 58 – New Tech High School at Coppell, Coppell ISD
No. 65 – Centennial High School, Frisco ISD
No. 70 – Reedy High School, Frisco ISD
No. 74 – Coppell High School, Coppell ISD
No. 77 – Lovejoy High School, Lovejoy ISD, Lucas
No. 78 – Wakeland High School, Frisco ISD
No. 79 – Liberty High School, Frisco ISD
No. 84 – Cedar Hill Collegiate High School, Cedar Hill ISD
No. 94 – James M. Steele Accelerated High School, Northwest ISD, Roanoke
No. 99 – Harmony Science Academy - Euless

Other nationally ranked Texas high schools
Six more Texas high schools graduate to U.S. News' list of the top 100 high schools in the U.S. for 2026-2027:

Houston ISD’s Carnegie Vanguard High School, No. 25 (up from No. 42 last year).
Austin ISD’s Liberal Arts and Science Academy, No. 43 (down from No. 36 last year).
BASIS San Antonio - Shavano Campus, No. 57 (up from No. 58 last year). The Shavano Campus also ranks No. 21 nationally among the best STEM high schools and No. 13 nationally among the best charter schools.
Houston ISD’s DeBakey High School for Health Professions, No. 91 (down from No. 75 last year).
Austin ISD's Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders, No. 97 (up from No. 142 last year).
San Antonio ISD's Young Women's Leadership Academy, No. 100 (down from No. 98 last year).

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