Communication Arts

Types of Degrees Communication Arts Majors Are Getting

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

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	9,720
Master’s Degree	711
Basic Certificate	400
Associate Degree	369
Doctor’s Degree	46
Graduate Certificate	20
Undergraduate Certificate	3

What Communication Arts Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, communication arts 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 Communication Arts Majors

According to O*NET survey takers, a major in communication arts should prepare you for careers in which you will need to be knowledgeable in the following areas:

• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Clerical - Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.

Skills for Communication Arts Majors

communication arts majors are found most commonly in careers in which the following skills are important:

• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• 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.
• 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 Communication Arts Majors

Some of the most crucial abilities to master while a communication arts student include the following:

• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• 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.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.

What Can You Do With a Communication Arts Major?

People with a communication arts degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Communications Professors	10.0%	$68,910
Copy Writers	7.6%	$62,170
Poets, Lyricists and Creative Writers	7.6%	$62,170
Public Relations Specialists	8.9%	$60,000

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Communication Arts?

The major attracts more women than men. About 65% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of communication arts majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	549
Black or African American	904
Hispanic or Latino	1,759
White	5,259
International Students	477
Other Races/Ethnicities	772

Geographic Diversity

Americans aren’t the only ones with an interest in Communication Arts. About 4.9% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Communication Arts

Some careers associated with communication arts require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. 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 communication arts careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Less than a High School Diploma	4.6%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	3.5%
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)	0.2%
Some College Courses	6.0%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	3.9%
Bachelor’s Degree	61.3%
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.	0.8%
Master’s Degree	14.9%
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.	0.3%
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.	0.6%
Doctoral Degree	2.7%
Post-Doctoral Training	1.3%

Online Communication Arts 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)	6	2
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	52	9
Bachelor’s Degree	12	5
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	78	15
Post-Master’s	2	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	15	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Communication Arts

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to communication arts.

Major	Number of Grads
Speech Communication	33,299
Communication & Media Studies	9,221
Other Communication & Media Studies	2,831

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 UNU-WIDER from Helsinki, Finland under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.