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health professions education

Types of Degrees health professions education Majors Are Earning

People majoring in health professions education may pursue degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Master’s Degree	80
Doctor’s Degree	22

What health professions education Majors Need to Know

Programs in health professions education emphasize a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that health professions education graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in health professions education emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Education and Training — Importance 4.6 / 5; level 6.1 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.6 / 5; level 5.8 / 7.
• Psychology — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Administration and Management — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Communications and Media — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.

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

Skills

The skill set built by a health professions education program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Learning Strategies — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to health professions education careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.5 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, health professions education graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Getting Information	4.6 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.5 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.3 / 7
Working with Computers	4.2 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.2 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.2 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.2 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.2 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.1 / 7
Coaching and Developing Others	4.0 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by health professions education professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Google Docs	Word processing software	—
SAS	Analytical or scientific software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Blackboard software	Data base user interface and query software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Desire2Learn LMS software	Computer based training software	—
Sakai CLE	Computer based training software	—
Email software	Electronic mail software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for health professions education graduates include:

• Lecturer
• College Professor
• Associate Professor
• Instructor
• Professor
• Adjunct Instructor
• Assistant Professor
• Faculty Member
• Educational Teaching Instructor
• Adult Basic Education Instructor
• Special Education Professor
• Educator
• Music Education Professor
• Science Education Professor
• Adjunct Education Professor

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to health professions education graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Doctoral degree	57.9%
Master’s degree	23.9%
Post-doctoral training	8.7%
Bachelor’s degree	6.2%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	2.0%
Postsecondary certificate	1.2%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in health professions education?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 72.5% of health professions education degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	74	72.5%
Men	28	27.5%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of health professions education graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	64	62.7%
Asian	8	7.8%
Hispanic or Latino	2	2.0%
Black or African American	15	14.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native	1	1.0%
Two or More Races	2	2.0%
Race Unknown	6	5.9%
International Students	4	3.9%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do health professions education Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of health professions education graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Earnings tend to climb steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$91,596
4 years	$89,352
5 years	$98,782

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $98,782 — roughly 8% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online health professions education Programs

Distance learning is tracked by IPEDS for health professions education. 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
Master’s	2	0
Doctoral (Research)	5	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 health professions education Worth It?

On the earnings side, the federal earnings tracker, health professions education graduates earn a median of $89,352 four years after completion — roughly 135% 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
Health Professions Education, Ethics, and Humanities	51.32
Arts in Medicine/Health	51.3206
Bioethics/Medical Ethics	51.3201
Health Professions Education, Ethics, and Humanities, Other	51.3299
History of Medicine	51.3205
Medical/Health Humanities	51.3204
Nursing Education	51.3203
Advanced General Dentistry	51.0502
Advanced/Graduate Dentistry and Oral Sciences, Other	51.0599

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.