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Corporate, Finance & Securities Law

Types of Degrees Corporate, Finance & Securities Law Majors Are Earning

Those studying Corporate, Finance & Securities Law may pursue degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Master’s Degree	417
Doctor’s Degree	9

What Corporate, Finance & Securities Law Majors Need to Know

Coursework for Corporate, Finance & Securities Law emphasize a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Corporate, Finance & Securities Law graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in Corporate, Finance & Securities Law emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Law and Government — Importance 4.9 / 5; level 6.1 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.7 / 5; level 6.0 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.7 / 7.
• Computers and Electronics — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Communications and Media — Importance 3.2 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.

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

Skills

The skill set emphasized by a Corporate, Finance & Securities Law program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.6 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Learning Strategies — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Corporate, Finance & Securities Law careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.7 / 5; level 5.3 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 5 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.3 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Corporate, Finance & Securities Law graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Getting Information	4.6 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.6 / 7
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	4.5 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.4 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.2 / 7
Coaching and Developing Others	4.1 / 7
Analyzing Data or Information	4.0 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	3.9 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	3.9 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	3.8 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Corporate, Finance & Securities Law professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
CT Summation iBlaze	Document management software	—
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
LexisNexis	Information retrieval or search software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
AbacusNext HotDocs	Document management software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	—
Thomson Reuters Westlaw	Information retrieval or search software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
LexisNexis CaseMap	Data base user interface and query software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	—
Microsoft Publisher	Desktop publishing software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Corporate, Finance & Securities Law graduates include:

• Professor
• Torts Law Professor
• College Professor
• Assistant Professor
• Law Adjunct Professor
• Media Law Faculty Member
• Faculty Member
• Associate Professor
• Legal Writing Professor
• College Faculty Member
• Paralegal Instructor
• Instructor
• Constitutional Law Professor
• Teacher
• Clinical Law Professor

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Corporate, Finance & Securities Law graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
First professional degree	43.2%
Doctoral degree	40.6%
Master’s degree	13.5%
Post-master’s certificate	1.8%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	0.9%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in Corporate, Finance & Securities Law?

Gender Distribution

This field has a relatively balanced gender distribution: 56.8% women and 43.2% men among Corporate, Finance & Securities Law graduates.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	242	56.8%
Men	184	43.2%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Corporate, Finance & Securities Law graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	117	27.5%
Asian	15	3.5%
Hispanic or Latino	28	6.6%
Black or African American	21	4.9%
Two or More Races	3	0.7%
Race Unknown	36	8.5%
International Students	206	48.4%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Corporate, Finance & Securities Law Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of Corporate, Finance & Securities Law 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	$78,306
4 years	$93,383
5 years	$107,509

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $107,509 — roughly 37% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online Corporate, Finance & Securities Law Programs

Fully online options is reported by IPEDS for Corporate, Finance & Securities Law. 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	4	4

^{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 Corporate, Finance & Securities Law Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Corporate, Finance & Securities Law graduates earn a median of $93,383 four years after completion — roughly 146% 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
Legal Research and Advanced Professional Studies	22.02
Advanced Legal Research/Studies, General	22.0201
Agriculture Law	22.0214
American/US Law/Legal Studies/Jurisprudence	22.0203
Arts and Entertainment Law	22.0215
Canadian Law/Legal Studies/Jurisprudence	22.0204
Comparative Law	22.0206
Compliance Law	22.0216
Criminal Law and Procedure	22.0217
Energy, Environment, and Natural Resources Law	22.0207
Entrepreneurship Law	22.0218
Family/Child/Elder Law	22.0219

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.