Types of Degrees Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many general human resources management/personnel administration graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	6,834
Master’s Degree	5,746
Basic Certificate	3,046
Graduate Certificate	1,109
Associate Degree	848
Undergraduate Certificate	412
Doctor’s Degree	28

What Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, hr management majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for HR Management Majors

Hr Management majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
• 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.
• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Skills for HR Management Majors

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

• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• 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.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Abilities for HR Management Majors

A major in hr management will prepare for your careers in which the following abilities are important:

• 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.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.

What Can You Do With a Major?

People with a hr management degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Compensation and Benefits Managers	5.1%	$121,010
Compensation, Benefits, and Job Analysis Specialists	8.4%	$63,000
Human Resources Managers	9.0%	$113,300
Human Resources Specialists	7.1%	$60,880
Training and Development Managers	10.4%	$111,340
Training and Development Specialists	11.5%	$60,870

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in ?

This major is dominated by women with about 73% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

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

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	308
Black or African American	984
Hispanic or Latino	1,128
White	3,634
International Students	155
Other Races/Ethnicities	625

Geographic Diversity

HR Management appeals to people across the globe. About 2.3% of those with this major are international students.

How Much Do Majors Make?

Salaries According to BLS

Average salaries range from $66,790 to $121,730 (25th to 75th percentile) for careers related to hr management. This range includes 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

Some careers associated with hr 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 hr management have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	5.5%
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)	1.1%
Some College Courses	2.6%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	3.9%
Bachelor’s Degree	49.5%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	6.1%
Master’s Degree	17.5%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	1.4%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession.	0.5%
Doctoral Degree	12.0%

Online Programs

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)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	49	19
Certificate (2-4 Years)	3	2
Associate’s Degree	96	42
Bachelor’s Degree	113	52
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	230	93
Post-Master’s	24	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	6	2
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Worth It?

The median salary for a hr management grad is $70,730 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 77% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $616,600 after 20 years!

Majors Related to

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to hr management.

Major	Number of Grads
Organizational Behavior Studies	3,650
Human Resources Development	2,083
Labor & Industrial Relations	1,778
Other Human Resources Management and Services	1,254
Labor Studies	193
Executive/Career Coaching	93

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 Arunkumar Umapathy under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.