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executive/career coaching

Types of Degrees executive/career coaching Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing executive/career coaching have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Master’s Degree	80
Doctor’s Degree	21

What executive/career coaching Majors Need to Know

Studies in executive/career coaching build a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that executive/career coaching graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in executive/career coaching emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Education and Training — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5.8 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Personnel and Human Resources — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Administration and Management — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.

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

Skills

Skills developed in a executive/career coaching program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.

Abilities

Abilities most relevant to executive/career coaching careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, executive/career coaching graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.7 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.5 / 7
Getting Information	4.4 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.4 / 7
Working with Computers	4.4 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.2 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.2 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.2 / 7
Coaching and Developing Others	4.1 / 7
Providing Consultation and Advice to Others	4.1 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by executive/career coaching professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Microsoft Project	Project management software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Oracle PeopleSoft	Enterprise resource planning ERP software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Microsoft Publisher	Desktop publishing software	—
Oracle Taleo	Human resources software	—
Microsoft Access	Data base user interface and query software	—
Blackboard software	Data base user interface and query software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for executive/career coaching graduates include:

• Development Associate
• HR Trainer (Human Resources Trainer)
• Training Supervisor
• Development Coordinator
• Job Development Specialist
• HR Coordinator (Human Resources Coordinator)
• Career Development Specialist
• Executive Coach
• Career Specialist
• Security Awareness Training Specialist
• Software Trainer
• Personnel Training Officer
• Apprenticeship and Training Representative
• Computer Software Training Specialist
• Employee Training Specialist

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to executive/career coaching graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Bachelor’s degree	69.5%
Master’s degree	14.1%
High school diploma or equivalent	5.1%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	4.1%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	3.8%
Some college courses	2.2%
Postsecondary certificate	1.2%
Post-master’s certificate	0.1%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in executive/career coaching?

Gender Distribution

This field has a relatively balanced gender distribution: 52.5% women and 47.5% men among executive/career coaching graduates.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	53	52.5%
Men	48	47.5%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of executive/career coaching graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	54	53.5%
Asian	1	1.0%
Hispanic or Latino	10	9.9%
Black or African American	24	23.8%
Two or More Races	2	2.0%
Race Unknown	10	9.9%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do executive/career coaching Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of executive/career coaching 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	$56,722
4 years	$57,321
5 years	$65,449

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $65,449 — roughly 15% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online executive/career coaching Programs

Distance learning is tracked by IPEDS for executive/career coaching. 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
Master’s	2	0
Doctoral (Research)	1	0

^{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 executive/career coaching Worth It?

On the earnings side, the federal earnings tracker, executive/career coaching graduates earn a median of $57,321 four years after completion — roughly 51% above the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000).

^{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
Human Resources Management and Services	52.10
Human Resources Development	52.1005
Human Resources Management and Services, Other	52.1099
Human Resources Management/Personnel Administration, General	52.1001
Labor and Industrial Relations	52.1002
Labor Studies	52.1004
Organizational Behavior Studies	52.1003
Business Administration and Management, General	52.0201
Organizational Leadership	52.0213

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.