Construction Management

Types of Degrees Construction Management Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many construction management graduations there were in 2018-2019 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	2,576
Master’s Degree	388
Associate’s Degree	361
Basic Certificate	144
Graduate Certificate	113
Undergraduate Certificate	76
Doctor’s Degree	6

What Construction Management Majors Need to Know

People with careers related to construction management were asked what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. They weighted these areas on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the highest.

Knowledge Areas for Construction Management Majors

According to O*NET survey takers, a major in construction management should prepare you for careers in which you will need to be knowledgeable in the following areas:

• Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
• Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

Skills for Construction Management Majors

A major in construction management prepares you for careers in which the following skill-sets are crucial:

• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Time Management - Managing one’s own time and the time of others.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

Abilities for Construction Management Majors

As you progress with your construction management degree, there are several abilities you should pick up that will help you in whatever related career you choose. These abilities include:

• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

What Can You Do With a Construction Management Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with construction management:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Construction Managers	11.1%	$93,370

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Construction Management?

This major tends to be male dominated. About 90% of recent graduates are men.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of construction management majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	40
Black or African American	129
Hispanic or Latino	196
White	1,983
International Students	65
Other Races/Ethnicities	163

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Construction Management, too. About 2.5% of those with this major are international students.

How Much Do Construction Management Majors Make?

Salaries According to BLS

The median salary for someone in a career related to construction management is $103,110. This median refers to all degree levels, so the salary for a person with just a bachelor’s degree may be a little less and the one for a person with an advanced degree may be a little more.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Construction Management

Some careers associated with construction management require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to construction management have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	4.0%
Some College Courses	12.0%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	4.0%
Bachelor’s Degree	76.0%
Master’s Degree	4.0%

Online Construction Management Programs

In 2018-2019, 153 schools offered a construction management program of some type. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	27	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	23	1
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	64	2
Bachelor’s Degree	9	4
Post-Baccalaureate	27	0
Master’s Degree	30	11
Post-Master’s	1	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	1	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Construction Management Worth It?

The median salary for a construction management grad is $103,110 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 158% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $1,264,200 after 20 years!

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020
• Image Credit: By RudolfSimon under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.