Food Science Tech

Types of Degrees Food Science Tech Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many food science technology graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	1,110
Master’s Degree	456
Basic Certificate	245
Doctor’s Degree	185
Associate Degree	97
Undergraduate Certificate	63
Graduate Certificate	25

What Food Science Tech Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, food science tech 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 Food Science Tech Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

• Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

Skills for Food Science Tech Majors

When studying food science tech, you’ll learn many skills that will help you be successful in a wide range of jobs - even those that do not require a degree in the field. The following is a list of some of the most common skills needed for careers associated with this major:

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

Abilities for Food Science Tech Majors

Food Science Tech 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.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).

What Can You Do With a Food Science Tech Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with food science tech:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Agricultural Sciences Professors	7.9%	$84,640
Agricultural Technicians	6.2%	$40,860
Food Science Technicians	6.2%	$40,860
Food Scientists and Technologists	5.9%	$65,300

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Food Science Tech?

This is a less frequently chosen undergraduate major. Only 1,413 students graduated with a bachelor’s degree in food science technology in 2021, making it rank #148 in popularity. The major attracts more women than men. About 66% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of food science tech majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	115
Black or African American	47
Hispanic or Latino	131
White	633
International Students	123
Other Races/Ethnicities	61

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Food Science Tech, too. About 11.1% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Food Science Tech

Some degrees associated with food science tech may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

Find out what the typical degree level is for food science tech careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Less than a High School Diploma	0.7%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	9.1%
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)	3.5%
Some College Courses	1.9%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	8.8%
Bachelor’s Degree	30.6%
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.	1.3%
Master’s Degree	20.4%
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.	4.4%
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	14.4%
Post-Doctoral Training	6.1%

Online Food Science Tech 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)	25	5
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	55	4
Bachelor’s Degree	15	6
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	51	1
Post-Master’s	2	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	36	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Food Science Tech

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to food science tech.

Major	Number of Grads
Animal Science	8,396
Veterinary/Animal Health Technologies/Technicians	8,257
Agricultural Economics & Business	8,085
Horticulture	3,932
Veterinary Medicine	3,555
Agricultural Production	3,522
Plant Sciences	3,307
General Agriculture	3,256
Agricultural Mechanization	1,402
Animal Services	1,217
Veterinary Biomedical and Clinical Sciences	954
Agricultural Public Services	866
Other Agriculture	700
Agriculture/Veterinary Preparatory Programs	486
Soil Sciences	439
International Agriculture	215
Food Processing	198
Veterinary Administrative Services	113

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 Muhammad Irshad Ansari under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.