Consumer Economics

Types of Degrees Consumer Economics Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many family & consumer economics graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	969
Master’s Degree	158
Graduate Certificate	64
Doctor’s Degree	9
Associate Degree	4
Basic Certificate	4

What Consumer Economics Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to consumer economics and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.

Knowledge Areas for Consumer Economics Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
• Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

Skills for Consumer Economics Majors

consumer economics majors are found most commonly in careers in which the following skills are important:

• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
• Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.

Abilities for Consumer Economics Majors

Consumer Economics majors often go into careers where the following abilities are vital:

• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

What Can You Do With a Consumer Economics Major?

People with a consumer economics degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Farm and Home Management Advisors	7.7%	$49,840

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Consumer Economics?

This is a less frequently chosen undergraduate major. Only 1,193 students graduated with a bachelor’s degree in family & consumer economics in 2021, making it rank #156 in popularity. This major is dominated by women with about 70% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of consumer economics majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	35
Black or African American	109
Hispanic or Latino	174
White	572
International Students	11
Other Races/Ethnicities	68

Geographic Diversity

Americans aren’t the only ones with an interest in Consumer Economics. About 1.1% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Consumer Economics

Some degrees associated with consumer economics may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

Find out what the typical degree level is for consumer economics careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Bachelor’s Degree	24.1%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	3.5%
Master’s Degree	58.6%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	6.9%
Doctoral Degree	6.9%

Online Consumer Economics Programs

The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	0	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	3	1
Bachelor’s Degree	6	2
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	8	3
Post-Master’s	1	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	2	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Consumer Economics

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to consumer economics.

Major	Number of Grads
Human Development & Family Studies	40,263
Food, Nutrition & Related Services	4,014
Textile & Apparel Studies	2,961
General Family & Consumer Sciences	2,454
Human Sciences Business Services	560
Housing	314
Family, Consumer & Human Sciences (Other)	142
Work and Family Studies	10

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020

More about our data sources and methodologies.