Animal-Assisted Therapy

Types of Degrees Animal-Assisted Therapy Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many animal-assisted therapy graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	51
Graduate Certificate	18
Associate Degree	17
Basic Certificate	12
Undergraduate Certificate	11

What Animal-Assisted Therapy Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, animal-assisted therapy majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for Animal-Assisted Therapy Majors

According to O*NET survey takers, a major in animal-assisted therapy should prepare you for careers in which you will need to be knowledgeable in the following areas:

• 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.
• Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
• Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

Skills for Animal-Assisted Therapy Majors

The following list of skills has been highlighted as some of the most essential for careers related to animal-assisted therapy:

• Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• 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.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Abilities for Animal-Assisted Therapy Majors

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

What Can You Do With a Animal-Assisted Therapy Major?

People with a animal-assisted therapy degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Health Specialties Professors	25.9%	$97,370
Therapists	19.9%	$50,980

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Animal-Assisted Therapy?

The major attracts more women than men. About 86% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of animal-assisted therapy majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	0
Black or African American	0
Hispanic or Latino	4
White	42
International Students	0
Other Races/Ethnicities	5

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Animal-Assisted Therapy

Some careers associated with animal-assisted therapy require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

Find out what the typical degree level is for animal-assisted therapy careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
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)	2.9%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	4.6%
Bachelor’s Degree	12.5%
Master’s Degree	35.9%
Doctoral Degree	24.9%
Post-Doctoral Training	19.1%

Online Animal-Assisted Therapy 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)	2	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	3	0
Bachelor’s Degree	4	0
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	1	1
Post-Master’s	2	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Animal-Assisted Therapy

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to animal-assisted therapy.

Major	Number of Grads
Physical Therapy/Therapist	13,762
Occupational Therapy	10,262
Rehabilitation Science	1,239
Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling	947
Therapeutic Recreation/Recreational Therapy	822
Music Therapy	710
Art Therapy	698
Other Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions	670
Orthotist/Prosthetist	325
Assistive/Augmentative Technology and Rehabilitation Engineering	156
Kinesiotherapy/Kinesiotherapist	106
Play Therapy	52
Dance Therapy	35
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions, General	33
Horticulture Therapy	8
Drama Therapy	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 Barbara E. Carver under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.