Liberal Arts & Humanities

Types of Degrees Liberal Arts & Humanities Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Associate Degree	401,197
Undergraduate Certificate	93,686
Bachelor’s Degree	43,302
Basic Certificate	15,948
Master’s Degree	2,044
Graduate Certificate	546
Doctor’s Degree	90

What Can You Do With a Liberal Arts & Humanities Major?

People with a liberal arts / sciences and humanities degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Professors	9.4%	$65,660

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Arts & Humanities?

This major is dominated by women with about 65% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	1,769
Black or African American	6,151
Hispanic or Latino	7,340
White	23,221
International Students	990
Other Races/Ethnicities	3,831

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities, too. About 2.3% of those with this major are international students.

How Much Do Liberal Arts & Humanities Majors Make?

Bachelor’s Degree Starting Salary

The median early-career salary of liberal arts / sciences and humanities students with a bachelor’s degree is $32,253 a year according to 2019-2020 data from the U.S. Department of Education. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $28,073 (25th percentile) and $36,463 (75th percentile).

Note that some of these people may have jobs that are not directly related to a liberal arts / sciences and humanities degree.

Salaries According to BLS

The median salary for someone in a career related to liberal arts / sciences and humanities is $76,990. This median refers to 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.

Online Liberal Arts & Humanities Programs

In the 2020-2021 academic year, 2,219 schools offered some type of liberal arts / sciences and humanities program. 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)	352	73
Certificate (2-4 Years)	10	2
Associate’s Degree	2,220	542
Bachelor’s Degree	58	9
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	246	30
Post-Master’s	21	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	30	1
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	1	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Liberal Arts & Humanities Worth It?

The median salary for a liberal arts / sciences and humanities grad is $76,990 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 93% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $741,800 after 20 years!

Majors Related to Liberal Arts & Humanities

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to liberal arts / sciences and humanities.

Major	Number of Grads
Visual & Performing Arts	149,215
English Language & Literature	54,635
Foreign Languages & Linguistics	33,333
Theology & Religious Vocations	27,459
Philosophy & Religious Studies	19,993

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 Jacques Sablet (Switzerland, Morges, 1749-1803) under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.