General Human Resources Management

Types of Degrees General Human Resources Management Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many general human resources management/personnel administration graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	7,325
Master’s Degree	6,010
Basic Certificate	3,163
Graduate Certificate	1,319
Associate Degree	832
Undergraduate Certificate	407
Doctor’s Degree	28

What General Human Resources Management Majors Need to Know

People with careers related to HR 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 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

The following list of skills has been highlighted as some of the most essential for careers related to HR management:

• 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

HR Management majors often go into careers where the following abilities are vital:

• 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 General Human Resources Management Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with HR management:

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 General Human Resources Management?

The major attracts more women than men. About 74% of the recent graduates in this field are 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	356
Black or African American	1,065
Hispanic or Latino	1,236
White	3,790
International Students	186
Other Races/Ethnicities	692

Geographic Diversity

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

How Much Do General Human Resources Management 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 General Human Resources Management

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 General Human Resources Management Programs

In 2020-2021, 613 schools offered a HR 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)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	50	18
Certificate (2-4 Years)	3	2
Associate’s Degree	97	34
Bachelor’s Degree	109	37
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	223	86
Post-Master’s	20	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	5	2
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in General Human Resources Management 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 General Human Resources Management

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

Major	Number of Grads
Organizational Behavior Studies	3,921
Human Resources Development	2,315
Labor & Industrial Relations	1,789
Other Human Resources Management and Services	1,450
Labor Studies	171
Executive/Career Coaching	57

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.