Other Foreign Language & Literature

Types of Degrees Other Foreign Language & Literature Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many foreign language, literature and linguistics (other) graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	249
Undergraduate Certificate	97
Basic Certificate	66
Associate Degree	37
Master’s Degree	26
Doctor’s Degree	13
Graduate Certificate	12

What Other Foreign Language & Literature Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to other foreign language 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 Other Foreign Language Majors

Other Foreign Language majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• 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.
• Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
• Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.

Skills for Other Foreign Language Majors

When studying other foreign language, you’ll learn many skills that will help you be successful in a wide range of jobs - even those that do not require a degree in the field. The following is a list of some of the most common skills needed for careers associated with this major:

• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• 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.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Abilities for Other Foreign Language Majors

Some of the most crucial abilities to master while a other foreign language student include the following:

• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
• 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 Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.

What Can You Do With a Other Foreign Language & Literature Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with other foreign language:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Foreign Language and Literature Professors	11.7%	$67,640
Interpreters and Translators	17.7%	$49,930

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Other Foreign Language & Literature?

This is a less frequently chosen undergraduate major. Only 249 students graduated with a bachelor’s degree in foreign language, literature and linguistics (other) in 2021, making it rank #242 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 other foreign language majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	38
Black or African American	16
Hispanic or Latino	38
White	126
International Students	4
Other Races/Ethnicities	27

Geographic Diversity

Other Foreign Language appeals to people across the globe. About 1.6% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

• China
• Colombia
• Mexico
• Saudi Arabia
• Spain

How Much Do Other Foreign Language & Literature Majors Make?

Bachelor’s Degree Starting Salary

The median starting salary of students who graduated in 2017-2019 with a bachelor’s degree in other foreign language was $32,740 per year. These stats come from the U.S. Department of Education. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $27,600 (25th percentile) and $37,239 (75th percentile).

One thing to note here is that not all of these people may be working in careers related to other foreign language.

Salaries According to BLS

Average salaries range from $55,230 to $79,160 (25th to 75th percentile) for careers related to other foreign language. This range includes all degree levels, so you may expect those with a more advanced degree to make more while those with less advanced degrees will typically make less.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Other Foreign Language & Literature

Some degrees associated with other foreign language 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.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to other foreign language have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	0.5%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	0.5%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	5.6%
Bachelor’s Degree	30.1%
Master’s Degree	21.7%
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.	4.3%
Doctoral Degree	37.8%

Online Other Foreign Language & Literature Programs

In 2020-2021, 68 schools offered a other foreign language program of some type. 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)	3	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	1	1
Associate’s Degree	8	0
Bachelor’s Degree	4	1
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	11	1
Post-Master’s	1	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	5	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Other Foreign Language & Literature Worth It?

The median salary for a other foreign language grad is $55,230 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 38% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $306,600 after 20 years!

Majors Related to Other Foreign Language & Literature

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to other foreign language.

Major	Number of Grads
Romance Languages	15,009
Linguistics & Comparative Literature	8,539
American Sign Language	2,724
East Asian Languages	2,293
Classical Languages & Literature	1,428
Germanic Languages	1,425
Slavic, Baltic & Albanian Languages	607
Middle Eastern Semitic Languages	607
Second Language Learning	108
Southeast Asian & Pacific Languages	38
South Asian Languages	24
Native American Languages	16
African Languages	4
Celtic Language & Literature	4
Iranian & Persian Languages	4
Greek Language & Literature	3
Turkic & Central Asian Languages	0

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
• Image Credit: By John Stephen Dwyer under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.