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Native American Studies

Types of Degrees Native American Studies Majors Are Earning

People majoring in Native American Studies can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	1
Associate’s Degree	139
Bachelor’s Degree	254
Master’s Degree	153
Doctor’s Degree	13

What Native American Studies Majors Need to Know

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

Knowledge Areas

Coursework in Native American 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 built by a Native American Studies program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

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

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Native American 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, Native American 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 Native American Studies professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Course management system software	Computer based training software	—
Calendar and scheduling software	Calendar and scheduling software	—
Collaborative editing software	Word processing software	—
iParadigms Turnitin	Information retrieval or search software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	—
FileMaker Pro	Data base user interface and query software	—
Image scanning software	Optical character reader OCR or scanning software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	—
Social media software	Web page creation and editing software	—
Blackboard Learn	Computer based training software	—
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Google Docs	Word processing software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Native American Studies graduates include:

• Lecturer
• African Studies Professor
• Gender Studies Lecturer
• Adjunct Professor
• College Professor
• Associate Professor
• Ethnic Origins Teacher
• Professor
• American Studies Professor
• Latin American Studies Professor
• Ethnic Studies Teacher
• Black Studies Professor
• Hawaiian Studies Lecturer
• Gender Studies Professor
• Humanities Professor

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Native American 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 Native American Studies?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 73% of Native American Studies degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	409	73.0%
Men	151	27.0%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

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

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	77	13.8%
Asian	2	0.4%
Hispanic or Latino	64	11.4%
Black or African American	1	0.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native	264	47.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	24	4.3%
Two or More Races	113	20.2%
Race Unknown	5	0.9%
International Students	10	1.8%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Native American Studies Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of Native American 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	$32,619
4 years	$46,128
5 years	$53,144

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $53,144 — roughly 63% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online Native American Studies Programs

Fully online options are documented by IPEDS for Native American 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
Associate’s	5	6
Bachelor’s	4	5
Master’s	2	0
Doctoral (Research)	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 Native American Studies Worth It?

On the earnings side, the federal earnings tracker, Native American Studies graduates earn a median of $46,128 four years after completion — roughly 21% 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
Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies	05.02
African-American/Black Studies	05.0201
Asian-American Studies	05.0206
Comparative Group Studies	05.0212
Deaf Studies	05.0211
Disability Studies	05.0210
Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies, Other	05.0299
Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies	05.0200
Folklore Studies	05.0209
Gay/Lesbian Studies	05.0208
Hispanic-American, Puerto Rican, and Mexican-American/Chicano Studies	05.0203
Women’s Studies	05.0207

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.