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Customer Service Support

Types of Degrees Customer Service Support Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing Customer Service Support may pursue degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	38
Associate’s Degree	5
Master’s Degree	1,290

What Customer Service Support Majors Need to Know

Studies in Customer Service Support build a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Customer Service Support graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in Customer Service Support emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 4.6 / 5; level 5.5 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.
• Computers and Electronics — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Sales and Marketing — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.
• Mathematics — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

Skills developed in a Customer Service Support program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Active Listening — Importance 4 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.
• Service Orientation — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 3.3 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 3.2 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.

Abilities

Abilities most relevant to Customer Service Support careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.
• Speech Recognition — Importance 4 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 3.3 / 7.
• Near Vision — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Customer Service Support graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.7 / 7
Working with Computers	4.5 / 7
Getting Information	4.4 / 7
Processing Information	4.4 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.3 / 7
Communicating with People Outside the Organization	4.3 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.2 / 7
Performing Administrative Activities	4.1 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.1 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	4.1 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Customer Service Support professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Microsoft Dynamics	Enterprise resource planning ERP software	—
Adobe Acrobat	Document management software	—
Microsoft Access	Data base user interface and query software	—
Intuit QuickBooks	Accounting software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	—
Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne	Enterprise resource planning ERP software	—
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
SAP software	Enterprise resource planning ERP software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Oracle E-Business Suite Financials	Financial analysis software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Customer Service Support graduates include:

• Hub Associate
• Customer Complaints Clerk
• Phone Representative
• Account Adjuster
• Service Advocate Contact
• Service Representative
• Customer Care Representative (CCR)
• Customer Support Specialist
• Automotive Service Advisor
• Warranty Clerk
• Customer Service Specialist
• Return-to-Factory Clerk
• Customer Service Cashier
• Bill Adjuster
• Client Services Representative

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Customer Service Support graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
High school diploma or equivalent	58.0%
Bachelor’s degree	13.4%
Some college courses	10.9%
Postsecondary certificate	9.4%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	8.4%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in Customer Service Support?

Gender Distribution

This field has a relatively balanced gender distribution: 41.2% women and 58.8% men among Customer Service Support graduates.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	1,493	41.2%
Men	2,128	58.8%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Customer Service Support graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	1,625	44.9%
Asian	39	1.1%
Hispanic or Latino	506	14.0%
Black or African American	978	27.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native	42	1.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	11	0.3%
Two or More Races	147	4.1%
Race Unknown	266	7.3%
International Students	7	0.2%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Customer Service Support Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of Customer Service Support graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Earnings tend to climb steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$24,716
4 years	$28,352
5 years	$31,368

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $31,368 — roughly 27% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online Customer Service Support Programs

Distance learning are documented by IPEDS for Customer Service Support. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Associate’s	1	10

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in Customer Service Support Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Customer Service Support graduates earn a median of $28,352 four years after completion — about 25% below the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000). On earnings alone, this program does not show an income premium over the baseline; non-financial outcomes (career interests, certification requirements, advancement potential) are typically the stronger argument for fields in this range.

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	CIP Code
Business Operations Support and Assistant Services	52.04
Administrative Assistant and Secretarial Science, General	52.0401
Business Operations Support and Secretarial Services, Other	52.0499
Business/Office Automation/Technology/Data Entry	52.0407
Executive Assistant/Executive Secretary	52.0402
General Office Occupations and Clerical Services	52.0408
Parts, Warehousing, and Inventory Management Operations	52.0409
Receptionist	52.0406
Traffic, Customs, and Transportation Clerk/Technician	52.0410

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.