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Women’s Studies

Types of Degrees Women’s Studies Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing Women’s Studies have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	26
Associate’s Degree	365
Bachelor’s Degree	1,681
Master’s Degree	637
Doctor’s Degree	31

What Women’s Studies Majors Need to Know

Coursework for Women’s Studies build a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Women’s Studies graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in Women’s 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 Women’s 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.
• Learning Strategies — Importance 4 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Active Learning — Importance 4 / 5; level 4 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Women’s 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.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Women’s 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 Women’s Studies professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Sakai CLE	Computer based training software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	—
Course management system software	Computer based training software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	—
Google Drive	Cloud-based data access and sharing software	—
Google Docs	Word processing software	—
Social media software	Web page creation and editing software	—
Desire2Learn LMS software	Computer based training software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Microsoft Windows	Operating system software	—
DOC Cop	Information retrieval or search software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Women’s Studies graduates include:

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

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Women’s 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 Women’s Studies?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 89.8% of Women’s Studies degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	2,467	89.8%
Men	279	10.2%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Women’s Studies graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	1,374	50.0%
Asian	173	6.3%
Hispanic or Latino	616	22.4%
Black or African American	252	9.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native	8	0.3%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	6	0.2%
Two or More Races	162	5.9%
Race Unknown	52	1.9%
International Students	103	3.8%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Women’s Studies Graduates Earn?

The U.S. Department of Education tracks median earnings of Women’s 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	$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 Women’s Studies Programs

Online study is reported by IPEDS for Women’s 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	3	7
Bachelor’s	3	7
Master’s	4	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 Women’s Studies Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Women’s 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
American Indian/Native American Studies	05.0202
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

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.