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Children’s & Adolescent Literature

Types of Degrees Children’s & Adolescent Literature Majors Are Earning

Those studying Children’s & Adolescent Literature have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Bachelor’s Degree	4
Master’s Degree	51

What Children’s & Adolescent Literature Majors Need to Know

Coursework for Children’s & Adolescent Literature develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Children’s & Adolescent Literature graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

Coursework in Children’s & Adolescent Literature emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• English Language — Importance 4.7 / 5; level 6.2 / 7.
• Communications and Media — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Sociology and Anthropology — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.

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

Skills

Skills emphasized by a Children’s & Adolescent Literature program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.6 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Children’s & Adolescent Literature careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.7 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Oral Expression — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Children’s & Adolescent Literature graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Thinking Creatively	4.4 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.3 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.2 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.2 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.2 / 7
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	4.2 / 7
Getting Information	4.2 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.1 / 7
Working with Computers	4.0 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	3.9 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Children’s & Adolescent Literature professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Adobe Photoshop	Graphics or photo imaging software	✓
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Adobe Illustrator	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Google Docs	Word processing software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Graphics creation software	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
DOC Cop	Information retrieval or search software	—
Learning management system LMS	Computer based training software	✓

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Children’s & Adolescent Literature graduates include:

• Literature Professor
• Developmental Reading Instructor
• English Adjunct Instructor
• Creative Writing Professor
• Etymology Professor
• Developmental English Instructor
• Etymology Teacher
• English Instructor
• Reading Professor
• Teacher
• Victorian Literature Professor
• Faculty Member
• Language Arts Teacher
• English Composition Instructor
• Adjunct Lecturer

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Children’s & Adolescent Literature graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Doctoral degree	44.9%
Master’s degree	24.5%
Bachelor’s degree	9.4%
Less than a high school diploma	8.9%
Some college courses	7.0%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	2.0%
High school diploma or equivalent	1.0%
First professional degree	1.0%
Post-master’s certificate	1.0%
Post-doctoral training	0.2%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in Children’s & Adolescent Literature?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 89.1% of Children’s & Adolescent Literature degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	49	89.1%
Men	6	10.9%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Children’s & Adolescent Literature graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	39	70.9%
Asian	6	10.9%
Hispanic or Latino	8	14.5%
Black or African American	2	3.6%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Children’s & Adolescent Literature Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of Children’s & Adolescent Literature 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	$24,997
4 years	$42,308
5 years	$49,276

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $49,276 — roughly 97% above the 1-year mark.

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

Is a Degree in Children’s & Adolescent Literature Worth It?

Strictly by the federal earnings tracker, Children’s & Adolescent Literature graduates earn a median of $42,308 four years after completion — roughly 11% 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
Literature	23.14
American Literature (Canadian)	23.1403
American Literature (United States)	23.1402
English Literature (British and Commonwealth)	23.1404
General Literature	23.1401
Literature, Other	23.1499
Creative Writing	23.1302
Professional, Technical, Business, and Scientific Writing	23.1303
Rhetoric and Composition	23.1304
Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies, Other	23.1399
Writing, General	23.1301

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.