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early childhood and family studies

Types of Degrees early childhood and family studies Majors Are Earning

Those studying early childhood and family studies have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Associate’s Degree	60
Bachelor’s Degree	333
Master’s Degree	46

What early childhood and family studies Majors Need to Know

Studies in early childhood and family studies develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that early childhood and family studies graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing early childhood and family studies emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• English Language — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Psychology — Importance 3.2 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.
• Biology — Importance 3.1 / 5; level 3.4 / 7.

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

Skills

Skills built by a early childhood and family studies program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Active Listening — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Social Perceptiveness — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Judgment and Decision Making — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.

Abilities

The cognitive and physical abilities most relevant to early childhood and family studies careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Problem Sensitivity — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Deductive Reasoning — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, early childhood and family studies graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.2 / 7
Getting Information	4.2 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.1 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.1 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.1 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.0 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	3.9 / 7
Communicating with People Outside the Organization	3.9 / 7
Scheduling Work and Activities	3.8 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	3.7 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by early childhood and family studies professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	—
Image editing software	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Microsoft Dynamics	Enterprise resource planning ERP software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	—
SAP software	Enterprise resource planning ERP software	—
Kahoot!	Multi-media educational software	—
ServiceNow	Data base user interface and query software	—
ESRI ArcGIS software	Geographic information system	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for early childhood and family studies graduates include:

• Community Educator
• Agriculture Extension Agent
• Family Development Extension Specialist
• Family Resource Management Specialist
• Farm Management Specialist
• Technology Education Teacher (Tech Ed Teacher)
• Home Economics Expert
• Farm Business Management Agent
• District Extension Service Agent
• Agriculture Extension Specialist
• Home Improvement Advisor
• Family and Consumer Science Teacher (FACS Teacher)
• Family and Consumer Sciences Extension Agent
• County Home Demonstrator
• Home Services Consultant

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to early childhood and family studies graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Master’s degree	36.9%
Post-doctoral training	15.1%
High school diploma or equivalent	14.4%
Bachelor’s degree	9.8%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	5.1%
Less than a high school diploma	5.0%
Doctoral degree	4.0%
Postsecondary certificate	3.9%
Some college courses	3.8%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	1.9%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in early childhood and family studies?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 94.1% of early childhood and family studies degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	413	94.1%
Men	26	5.9%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of early childhood and family studies graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	164	37.4%
Asian	4	0.9%
Hispanic or Latino	165	37.6%
Black or African American	75	17.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native	2	0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	2	0.5%
Two or More Races	9	2.1%
Race Unknown	15	3.4%
International Students	3	0.7%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do early childhood and family studies Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of early childhood and family 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	$33,243
4 years	$38,875
5 years	$44,531

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $44,531 — roughly 34% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online early childhood and family studies Programs

Fully online options are documented by IPEDS for early childhood and family 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
Bachelor’s	3	2
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 early childhood and family studies Worth It?

On the earnings side, the federal earnings tracker, early childhood and family studies graduates earn a median of $38,875 four years after completion — roughly 2% 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
Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services	19.07
Adult Development and Aging	19.0702
Child Care and Support Services Management	19.0708
Child Care Provider/Assistant	19.0709
Child Development	19.0706
Developmental Services Worker	19.0710
Family and Community Services	19.0707
Family Systems	19.0704
Human Development and Family Studies, General	19.0701
Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services, Other	19.0799
Parent Education Services	19.0712
Apparel and Textiles, General	19.0901

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.