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Other Area Studies

Types of Degrees Other Area Studies Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing Other Area Studies have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	10
Associate’s Degree	49
Bachelor’s Degree	496
Master’s Degree	67
Doctor’s Degree	8

What Other Area Studies Majors Need to Know

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

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in Other Area Studies emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Education and Training — Importance 4.6 / 5; level 6 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.6 / 5; level 6.0 / 7.
• Sociology and Anthropology — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• History and Archeology — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Foreign Language — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.

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

Skills

The skill set built by a Other Area Studies program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Learning Strategies — Importance 4 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.

Abilities

The cognitive and physical abilities most relevant to Other Area Studies careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Other Area Studies graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Training and Teaching Others	4.6 / 7
Getting Information	4.5 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.5 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.4 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.3 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.3 / 7
Developing Objectives and Strategies	4.2 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	4.1 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	4.1 / 7
Coaching and Developing Others	4.1 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Other Area Studies professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	—
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	—
Microsoft Windows	Operating system software	—
Google Docs	Word processing software	—
DOC Cop	Information retrieval or search software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	—
iParadigms Turnitin	Information retrieval or search software	—
Image scanning software	Optical character reader OCR or scanning software	—
Learning management system LMS	Computer based training software	—
FileMaker Pro	Data base user interface and query software	—
Google Drive	Cloud-based data access and sharing software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Other Area Studies graduates include:

• African Studies Professor
• Asian Studies Professor
• Professor
• Ethnology Teacher
• Latin American Studies Professor
• College Professor
• American Studies Professor
• Adjunct Professor
• Women’s Studies Professor
• Ethnic Studies Teacher
• College Faculty Member
• Ethnology Professor
• Ethnic Studies Professor
• University Faculty Member
• Gender Studies Professor

Education Typically Required

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

Education Level	Share of Workers
Doctoral degree	60.5%
Master’s degree	31.0%
Post-doctoral training	4.0%
Post-master’s certificate	3.2%
First professional degree	1.1%
High school diploma or equivalent	0.2%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in Other Area Studies?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 72.2% of Other Area Studies degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	455	72.2%
Men	175	27.8%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Other Area Studies graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	317	50.3%
Asian	66	10.5%
Hispanic or Latino	100	15.9%
Black or African American	43	6.8%
American Indian / Alaska Native	1	0.2%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	2	0.3%
Two or More Races	40	6.3%
Race Unknown	11	1.7%
International Students	50	7.9%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Other Area Studies Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of Other Area Studies 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	$37,815
4 years	$54,317
5 years	$64,382

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $64,382 — roughly 70% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online Other Area Studies Programs

Online study is tracked by IPEDS for Other Area Studies. 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	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 Other Area Studies Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Other Area Studies graduates earn a median of $54,317 four years after completion — roughly 43% 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
Area Studies	05.01
African Studies	05.0101
American/United States Studies/Civilization	05.0102
Appalachian Studies	05.0135
Arctic Studies	05.0136
Asian Studies/Civilization	05.0103
Balkans Studies	05.0116
Baltic Studies	05.0117
Canadian Studies	05.0115
Caribbean Studies	05.0119
Chinese Studies	05.0123
Commonwealth Studies	05.0121

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.