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Southeast Asian Studies

Types of Degrees Southeast Asian Studies Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing Southeast Asian Studies may pursue degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Master’s Degree	11

What Southeast Asian Studies Majors Need to Know

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

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in Southeast Asian 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

Skills developed in a Southeast Asian 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.
• Active Listening — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.

Abilities

Abilities most relevant to Southeast Asian Studies careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Written Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Oral Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5 / 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, Southeast Asian 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 Southeast Asian Studies professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Calendar and scheduling software	Calendar and scheduling software	—
Sakai CLE	Computer based training software	—
Google Drive	Cloud-based data access and sharing software	—
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	—
Social media software	Web page creation and editing software	—
DOC Cop	Information retrieval or search software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Image scanning software	Optical character reader OCR or scanning software	—
Collaborative editing software	Word processing software	—
Microsoft Windows	Operating system software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Southeast Asian Studies graduates include:

• Black Studies Professor
• Humanities Professor
• Asian Studies Professor
• University Faculty Member
• Professor
• Hawaiian Studies Lecturer
• Lecturer
• Ethnic Studies Teacher
• College Faculty Member
• Ethnic Origins Teacher
• African Studies Professor
• Faculty Lecturer
• Women’s Studies Professor
• Ethnology Teacher
• Gender Studies Professor

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Southeast Asian 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 Southeast Asian Studies?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 63.6% of Southeast Asian Studies degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	7	63.6%
Men	4	36.4%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

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

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	2	18.2%
Asian	5	45.5%
Two or More Races	2	18.2%
International Students	2	18.2%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Southeast Asian Studies Graduates Earn?

The U.S. Department of Education tracks median earnings of Southeast Asian Studies graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Wages typically rise 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.}

Is a Degree in Southeast Asian Studies Worth It?

On the earnings side, the federal earnings tracker, Southeast Asian 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
Area Studies, Other	05.0199
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

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.