Occupational Distribution of Humanities Bachelor’s Degree Holders, by Highest Degree, 2018

Occupational Distribution of Humanities Bachelor’s Degree Holders, by Highest Degree, 2018

The occupational distribution of humanities majors who went on to earn an advanced degree differs substantially from that of their counterparts with a terminal bachelor’s degree. Among those whose highest degree was a bachelor’s, over a third were employed in office, sales, and service jobs, as compared to only 13% of those with advanced degrees. In contrast, those who had gone on to earn an advanced degree (in any field) were likeliest to work in education occupations, with 28% holding such jobs (the bulk of them in precollegiate teaching), with another 12% employed in legal occupations. The share in management jobs, however, was similar between terminal bachelor’s and advanced degree holders, accounting for 15% and 12% of each group respectively.19

Endnotes

• 19 2018 American Community Survey PUMS. Degree holders are those employed at any time in the five years preceding their response to the survey.