Types of Degrees Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many management information systems graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	8,678
Master’s Degree	1,960
Associate Degree	727
Basic Certificate	659
Graduate Certificate	293
Undergraduate Certificate	76
Doctor’s Degree	36

What Majors Need to Know

People with careers related to mis 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 MIS Majors

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

• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• 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.
• 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.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• 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.

Skills for MIS Majors

mis majors are found most commonly in careers in which the following skills are important:

• 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.
• Programming - Writing computer programs for various purposes.
• Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

Abilities for MIS Majors

As a mis major, you will find yourself needing the following abilities:

• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• 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.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

What Can You Do With a Major?

People with a mis degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Computer and Information Systems Managers	12.0%	$142,530

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in ?

This is one of the most frequently chosen business majors. It is the 11th most popular in the country with 9,324 students graduating with a bachelor’s in mis in 2021. This major tends to be male dominated. About 68% of recent graduates are men.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

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

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	1,242
Black or African American	860
Hispanic or Latino	1,136
White	4,377
International Students	452
Other Races/Ethnicities	611

Geographic Diversity

Americans aren’t the only ones with an interest in MIS. About 5.2% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

• Saudi Arabia
• India
• China
• Nepal
• South Korea

How Much Do Majors Make?

Bachelor’s Degree Starting Salary

Salaries According to BLS

Average salaries range from $89,580 to $152,860 (25th to 75th percentile) for careers related to mis. This range includes all degree levels, so you may expect those with a more advanced degree to make more while those with less advanced degrees will typically make less.

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 mis require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

Find out what the typical degree level is for mis careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	0.7%
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)	3.1%
Some College Courses	15.2%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	5.3%
Bachelor’s Degree	66.2%
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.	1.5%
Master’s Degree	8.0%

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)	42	10
Certificate (2-4 Years)	2	0
Associate’s Degree	100	26
Bachelor’s Degree	84	26
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	141	48
Post-Master’s	12	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	12	3
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Worth It?

The median salary for a mis grad is $89,580 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 125% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $993,600 after 20 years!

Majors Related to

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

Major	Number of Grads
Business Administration & Management	403,753
Accounting	93,982
General Business/Commerce	56,779
Finance & Financial Management	54,690
Marketing	52,078
Management Sciences & Quantitative Methods	48,037
Human Resource Management	27,074
Business Support & Assistant Services	19,686
Hospitality Management	16,015
Entrepreneurial Studies	12,241
International Business	8,014
Real Estate	7,448
General Sales & Marketing	5,450
Business/Managerial Economics	5,151
Specialized Sales, Merchandising & Marketing	4,668
Other Business, Management & Marketing	4,606
Construction Management	4,158
Insurance	1,737
Taxation	1,447
Business/Corporate Communications	897
Telecommunications Management	68

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 Dzonatas under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.