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Fashion Merchandising

Types of Degrees Fashion Merchandising Majors Are Earning

People majoring in Fashion Merchandising can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	20
Associate’s Degree	1,061
Bachelor’s Degree	1,720
Master’s Degree	46

What Fashion Merchandising Majors Need to Know

Coursework for Fashion Merchandising develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Fashion Merchandising graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

Coursework in Fashion Merchandising emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Sales and Marketing — Importance 4.6 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 4.5 / 5; level 5.2 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Mathematics — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Transportation — Importance 3.2 / 5; level 3.3 / 7.

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

Skills

The skill set emphasized by a Fashion Merchandising program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Active Listening — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Negotiation — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Persuasion — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Social Perceptiveness — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Fashion Merchandising careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Speech Recognition — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Fashion Merchandising graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Getting Information	4.4 / 7
Selling or Influencing Others	4.4 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.2 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.2 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.2 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.1 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	4.1 / 7
Working with Computers	4.1 / 7
Communicating with People Outside the Organization	3.9 / 7
Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings	3.9 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Fashion Merchandising professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
LinkedIn	Web page creation and editing software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Qlik Tech QlikView	Business intelligence and data analysis software	—
Microsoft Internet Explorer	Internet browser software	—
Enterprise resource planning ERP software	Enterprise resource planning ERP software	—
Microsoft Access	Data base user interface and query software	—
Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne	Enterprise resource planning ERP software	—
Microsoft Windows	Operating system software	—
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Oracle PeopleSoft	Enterprise resource planning ERP software	—
Eclipse IDE	Development environment software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Fashion Merchandising graduates include:

• Exporter
• School Supplies Sales Representative
• Printing Supplies Sales Representative
• Pressure Sensitive Tape Sales Representative
• Salesman
• Sales Professional
• Motor Vehicle Supply Sales Representative
• Office Materials Sales Representative
• Independent Sales Representative
• Turf Salesperson
• Food Products Sales Representative
• Sales Account Executive
• Circulation Sales Representative
• Petroleum Products Sales Representative
• Florist Supplies Salesperson

Education Typically Required

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

Education Level	Share of Workers
High school diploma or equivalent	40.6%
Bachelor’s degree	34.1%
Some college courses	12.6%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	5.9%
Less than a high school diploma	3.7%
Postsecondary certificate	2.7%
Post-master’s certificate	0.3%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in Fashion Merchandising?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 89% of Fashion Merchandising degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	2,534	89.0%
Men	313	11.0%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Fashion Merchandising graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	1,387	48.7%
Asian	181	6.4%
Hispanic or Latino	538	18.9%
Black or African American	280	9.8%
American Indian / Alaska Native	8	0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	6	0.2%
Two or More Races	105	3.7%
Race Unknown	49	1.7%
International Students	293	10.3%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Fashion Merchandising Graduates Earn?

The U.S. Department of Education tracks median earnings of Fashion Merchandising 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	$37,031
4 years	$44,812
5 years	$50,781

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $50,781 — roughly 37% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online Fashion Merchandising Programs

Distance learning is tracked by IPEDS for Fashion Merchandising. 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	4	6
Bachelor’s	8	9
Master’s	2	1

^{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 Fashion Merchandising Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Fashion Merchandising graduates earn a median of $44,812 four years after completion — roughly 18% 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
Specialized Sales, Merchandising and Marketing Operations	52.19
Apparel and Accessories Marketing Operations	52.1904
Auctioneering	52.1901
Business and Personal/Financial Services Marketing Operations	52.1908
Fashion Modeling	52.1903
Hospitality and Recreation Marketing Operations	52.1910
Reserved	52.1980
Special Products Marketing Operations	52.1909
Specialized Merchandising, Sales, and Marketing Operations, Other	52.1999
Tourism and Travel Services Marketing Operations	52.1905
Tourism Promotion Operations	52.1906
Vehicle and Vehicle Parts and Accessories Marketing Operations	52.1907

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.