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Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages

Types of Degrees Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Bachelor’s Degree	26
Master’s Degree	5
Doctor’s Degree	8

What Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages Majors Need to Know

Programs in Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages build a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Foreign Language — Importance 4.7 / 5; level 5.9 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.5 / 5; level 5.2 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Administrative — Importance 3.1 / 5; level 3.6 / 7.
• Sociology and Anthropology — Importance 2.8 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.

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

Skills

The skill set developed in a Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Oral Expression — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	4.2 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.1 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.1 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.0 / 7
Getting Information	3.9 / 7
Working with Computers	3.9 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	3.8 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	3.7 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	3.7 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	3.7 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Blackboard software	Data base user interface and query software	—
Sakai CLE	Computer based training software	—
Computer assisted language learning CALL software	Foreign language software	—
Adobe Photoshop	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
DOC Cop	Information retrieval or search software	—
Course management system software	Computer based training software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages graduates include:

• Spanish Literature Professor
• Biblical Languages Professor
• College Faculty Member
• Foreign Languages Professor
• Chinese Instructor
• Program Instructor
• Hebrew Teacher
• ESL Instructor (English as a Second Language Instructor)
• University Faculty Member
• College Professor
• Italian Teacher
• Languages Professor
• Bilingual Instructor
• Instructor
• Spanish Professor

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Doctoral degree	44.6%
Bachelor’s degree	26.8%
Master’s degree	21.8%
High school diploma or equivalent	3.1%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	1.7%
Post-master’s certificate	1.4%
Postsecondary certificate	0.5%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages?

Gender Distribution

This field has a relatively balanced gender distribution: 53.8% women and 46.2% men among Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages graduates.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	21	53.8%
Men	18	46.2%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	20	51.3%
Asian	1	2.6%
Hispanic or Latino	2	5.1%
Black or African American	2	5.1%
Two or More Races	6	15.4%
International Students	8	20.5%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages 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	$48,355
4 years	$57,980
5 years	$73,123

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $73,123 — roughly 51% above the 1-year mark.

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

Is a Degree in Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Middle Eastern & Semitic Languages graduates earn a median of $57,980 four years after completion — roughly 53% 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
Middle/Near Eastern and Semitic Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics	16.11
Ancient Near Eastern and Biblical Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics	16.1103
Arabic Language and Literature	16.1101
Hebrew Language and Literature	16.1102
Middle/Near Eastern and Semitic Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics, Other	16.1199
African Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics	16.0201
Albanian Language and Literature	16.0404
American Indian/Native American Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics	16.1001
American Sign Language (ASL)	16.1601
Ancient/Classical Greek Language and Literature	16.1202
Applied Linguistics	16.0105
Armenian Language and Literature	16.1801

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.