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Spanish Language & Literature

Types of Degrees Spanish Language & Literature Majors Are Earning

People majoring in Spanish Language & Literature can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	54
Associate’s Degree	829
Bachelor’s Degree	6,460
Master’s Degree	1,276
Doctor’s Degree	156

What Spanish Language & Literature Majors Need to Know

Studies in Spanish Language & Literature emphasize a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Spanish Language & Literature graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing Spanish Language & Literature emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• English Language — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Foreign Language — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.1 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.
• Computers and Electronics — Importance 3.0 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.

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

Skills

The skill set emphasized by a Spanish Language & Literature program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.

Abilities

Abilities most relevant to Spanish Language & Literature careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

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

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Spanish Language & Literature graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Training and Teaching Others	4.3 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.1 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.0 / 7
Working with Computers	4.0 / 7
Getting Information	4.0 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.0 / 7
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	3.9 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	3.9 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	3.9 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	3.9 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Spanish Language & Literature professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Blackboard software	Data base user interface and query software	—
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Moodle	Computer based training software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	—
Sakai CLE	Computer based training software	—
Adobe Illustrator	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Blackboard Learn	Computer based training software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Spanish Language & Literature graduates include:

• Spanish Teacher
• Teacher
• Hebrew Teacher
• Language Instructor
• Language Arts Teacher
• ESL Instructor (English as a Second Language Instructor)
• French Teacher
• Language Teacher
• Bilingual Teacher
• Italian Teacher
• Greek Professor
• Arabic Instructor
• Bilingual Instructor
• University Faculty Member
• Swahili Teacher

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Spanish Language & Literature graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Bachelor’s degree	45.2%
Doctoral degree	28.2%
Master’s degree	15.1%
Post-master’s certificate	3.8%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	2.9%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	2.6%
High school diploma or equivalent	2.0%
Postsecondary certificate	0.3%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in Spanish Language & Literature?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 76% of Spanish Language & Literature degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	6,756	76.0%
Men	2,135	24.0%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Spanish Language & Literature graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	3,723	41.9%
Asian	230	2.6%
Hispanic or Latino	3,937	44.3%
Black or African American	236	2.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native	7	0.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	1	0.0%
Two or More Races	253	2.8%
Race Unknown	162	1.8%
International Students	342	3.8%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Spanish Language & Literature Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of Spanish Language & Literature 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	$35,134
4 years	$47,838
5 years	$56,094

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $56,094 — roughly 60% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online Spanish Language & Literature Programs

Distance learning is tracked by IPEDS for Spanish Language & Literature. 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	13	11
Bachelor’s	13	27
Master’s	5	5

^{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 Spanish Language & Literature Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Spanish Language & Literature graduates earn a median of $47,838 four years after completion — roughly 26% 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
Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics	16.09
Catalan Language and Literature	16.0907
French Language and Literature	16.0901
Hispanic and Latin American Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics, General	16.0908
Italian Language and Literature	16.0902
Portuguese Language and Literature	16.0904
Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics, Other	16.0999
Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics	16.0900
Romanian Language and Literature	16.0906
American Indian/Native American Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics	16.1001
American Sign Language (ASL)	16.1601
Ancient/Classical Greek Language and Literature	16.1202

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.