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Bilingual & Multilingual Education

Types of Degrees Bilingual & Multilingual Education Majors Are Earning

People majoring in Bilingual & Multilingual Education may pursue degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	1
Associate’s Degree	2
Bachelor’s Degree	88
Master’s Degree	828
Doctor’s Degree	4

What Bilingual & Multilingual Education Majors Need to Know

Programs in Bilingual & Multilingual Education develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Bilingual & Multilingual Education graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in Bilingual & Multilingual Education emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Education and Training — Importance 4.5 / 5; level 5.3 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Psychology — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Mathematics — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 3.4 / 7.

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

Skills

Skills built by a Bilingual & Multilingual Education program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.
• Learning Strategies — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Bilingual & Multilingual Education careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Bilingual & Multilingual Education graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Training and Teaching Others	4.3 / 7
Getting Information	4.2 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.1 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.1 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.1 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.0 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.0 / 7
Coaching and Developing Others	3.9 / 7
Developing Objectives and Strategies	3.8 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	3.7 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Bilingual & Multilingual Education professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Padlet	Computer based training software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	—
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Children’s educational software	Computer based training software	—
Seesaw	Multi-media educational software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Blackboard software	Data base user interface and query software	—
Desmos	Analytical or scientific software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Bilingual & Multilingual Education graduates include:

• Teacher
• Educator
• Montessori Teacher
• Instructor
• Physical Fitness Teacher
• Art Teacher
• Classroom Teacher
• Lecturer
• Early Childhood Teacher
• Bilingual Instructor
• Math Teacher (Mathematics Teacher)
• Bilingual Teacher
• ESL Teacher (English as a Second Language Teacher)
• After School Teacher
• English Teacher

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Bilingual & Multilingual Education graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Bachelor’s degree	42.9%
Doctoral degree	23.5%
Master’s degree	10.1%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	8.3%
High school diploma or equivalent	5.8%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	3.0%
Some college courses	2.4%
Postsecondary certificate	1.9%
Less than a high school diploma	1.2%
Post-master’s certificate	0.9%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in Bilingual & Multilingual Education?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 88.2% of Bilingual & Multilingual Education degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	822	88.2%
Men	110	11.8%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Bilingual & Multilingual Education graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	286	30.7%
Asian	40	4.3%
Hispanic or Latino	502	53.9%
Black or African American	12	1.3%
American Indian / Alaska Native	10	1.1%
Two or More Races	7	0.8%
Race Unknown	27	2.9%
International Students	48	5.2%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Bilingual & Multilingual Education Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of Bilingual & Multilingual Education graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. These numbers tend to grow steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$61,405
4 years	$62,672
5 years	$69,660

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $69,660 — roughly 13% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online Bilingual & Multilingual Education Programs

Online study is tracked by IPEDS for Bilingual & Multilingual Education. 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	11	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 Bilingual & Multilingual Education Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Bilingual & Multilingual Education graduates earn a median of $62,672 four years after completion — roughly 65% 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
Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education	13.02
Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education, Other	13.0299
Indian/Native American Education	13.0203
Multicultural Education	13.0202
Montessori Teacher Education	13.1207
Waldorf/Steiner Teacher Education	13.1208
Teacher Education, Multiple Levels	13.1206
Teaching English as a Second or Foreign Language/ESL Language Instructor	13.1401
Teaching English or French as a Second or Foreign Language, Other	13.1499
Teaching French as a Second or Foreign Language	13.1402
International Teaching and Learning	13.1212
Online Educator/Online Teaching	13.1211

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.