Job Satisfaction of Humanities Master’s Degree Recipients
- Ninety-two percent of workers with a terminal master’s degree in the humanities reported they were satisfied with their job in 2019 (Indicator III-25a). This share of satisfied workers (those who reported they were either “somewhat” or “very” satisfied) was similar to that reported by master’s degree holders generally (91%).
- Little difference was found in job satisfaction between men and women who hold a terminal master’s degree in humanities (not pictured). Comparison by race/ethnicity is not possible because holders of a humanities master’s degree are only a small part of the sample population for the survey, and this problem is exacerbated by the disproportionately small share of master’s degree holders in the humanities who are members of traditionally minoritized racial/ethnic groups.
- When asked about their satisfaction with particular aspects of their job, terminal master’s degree recipients in the humanities were only modestly different (within five percentage points), either positively or negatively, from terminal master’s degree holders in general on every aspect except salary and job security (Indicator III-25b). For these aspects of the job, the disparity was somewhat greater, with humanities master’s degree holders less likely than master’s recipients generally to express satisfaction. (See the supplemental tables for information about the other major academic fields.)
- As was true of master’s degree recipients generally, humanities graduates were substantially less likely to express satisfaction with opportunities for advancement, salary, and benefits than with other aspects of their job.
* Excludes holders of the J.D. and other professional degrees. Bachelor’s degree may be in any field.
Source: National Science Foundation, 2019 National Survey of College Graduates. Data analyzed and presented by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators (www.humanitiesindicators.org).
Conducted every two years, the National Survey of College Graduates (NSCG) gathers detailed education, occupation, and earnings information from a sample of individuals drawn from the larger pool of all those identified via the American Community Survey as holders of a baccalaureate degree. The National Science Foundation makes NSCG data available to researchers and the general public via downloadable data files and its online data analysis tool, SESTAT. Given the size of the NSCG sample, reliable estimates are available only for broad academic fields. For the NSCG disciplinary categories included in each of the field-of-degree categories employed by the Humanities Indicators, see the provided crosswalk. The categories for level of satisfaction in the survey were “very satisfied,” “somewhat satisfied,” “somewhat dissatisfied,” and “very dissatisfied.”
* Bachelor’s degree may be in any field. This analysis excludes holders of the J.D. and other professional degrees. For comparison of the humanities with other academic fields, see the supplemental tables.
Source: National Science Foundation, 2019 National Survey of College Graduates. Data analyzed and presented by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators (www.humanitiesindicators.org).
Conducted every two years, the National Survey of College Graduates (NSCG) gathers detailed education, occupation, and earnings information from a sample of individuals drawn from the larger pool of all those identified via the American Community Survey as holders of a baccalaureate degree. The National Science Foundation makes NSCG data available to researchers and the general public via downloadable data files and its online data analysis tool, SESTAT. Given the size of the NSCG sample, reliable estimates are available only for broad academic fields. For the NSCG disciplinary categories included in each of the field-of-degree categories employed by the Humanities Indicators, see the provided crosswalk. The categories for level of satisfaction in the survey were “very satisfied,” “somewhat satisfied,” “somewhat dissatisfied,” and “very dissatisfied.”
