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Military Applied Sciences

Types of Degrees Military Applied Sciences Majors Are Earning

People majoring in Military Applied Sciences may pursue degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Associate’s Degree	8
Bachelor’s Degree	135
Master’s Degree	240

What Military Applied Sciences Majors Need to Know

Studies in Military Applied Sciences build a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Military Applied Sciences graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in Military Applied Sciences emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Engineering and Technology — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Computers and Electronics — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Mathematics — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.
• Physics — Importance 3.5 / 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 Military Applied Sciences program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.
• Quality Control Analysis — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.7 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 3.4 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 3.6 / 7.
• Operations Monitoring — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 3.1 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Military Applied Sciences careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Near Vision — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Problem Sensitivity — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 3.8 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Deductive Reasoning — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Military Applied Sciences graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials	4.5 / 7
Getting Information	4.3 / 7
Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards	4.3 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	4.2 / 7
Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings	4.2 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.1 / 7
Working with Computers	4.1 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	4.0 / 7
Processing Information	4.0 / 7
Controlling Machines and Processes	4.0 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Military Applied Sciences professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Autodesk AutoCAD	Computer aided design CAD software	—
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft Access	Data base user interface and query software	—
SAP software	Enterprise resource planning ERP software	—
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
National Instruments LabVIEW	Development environment software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Dassault Systemes SolidWorks	Computer aided design CAD software	—
Facebook	Web page creation and editing software	—
Image processing software	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Data acquisition software	Analytical or scientific software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Military Applied Sciences graduates include:

• Test Technician (Test Tech)
• Laser Specialist
• Strain Technician (Strain Tech)
• Optics Manufacturing Technician (Optics Manufacturing Tech)
• Laser Technician (Laser Tech)
• Fiber Optics Splicer
• Fiber Optics Assembler
• Fiber Optics Technician (Fiber Optics Tech)
• Splicing Technician (Splicing Tech)
• Photonics Engineering Technologist
• Fiber Splicer
• Fiber Technician (Fiber Tech)
• Optics Technician (Optics Tech)
• Photonics Engineering Technician (Photonics Engineering Tech)
• Optical Fabrication Technician (Optical Fabrication Tech)

Education Typically Required

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

Education Level	Share of Workers
High school diploma or equivalent	47.2%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	25.4%
Bachelor’s degree	9.2%
Postsecondary certificate	6.9%
Some college courses	6.8%
Master’s degree	2.3%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	2.2%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in Military Applied Sciences?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly male, with men earning 83.6% of Military Applied Sciences degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	63	16.4%
Men	320	83.6%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Military Applied Sciences graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	267	69.7%
Asian	12	3.1%
Hispanic or Latino	37	9.7%
Black or African American	13	3.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	4	1.0%
Two or More Races	9	2.3%
Race Unknown	27	7.0%
International Students	14	3.7%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Military Applied Sciences Graduates Earn?

The U.S. Department of Education tracks median earnings of Military Applied Sciences graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Wages typically rise steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$89,751
5 years	$58,787

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $58,787 — roughly -34% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online Military Applied Sciences Programs

Distance learning is tracked by IPEDS for Military Applied Sciences. 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	2	0
Master’s	2	1
Doctoral (Research)	1	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.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	CIP Code
Military Technologies Sciences	29
Intelligence, Command Control and Information Operations	29.02
Military Systems and Maintenance Technology	29.04
Military Technologies and Applied Sciences, Other	29.99
MILITARY TECHNOLOGIES AND APPLIED SCIENCES	29.00
Military Technology and Applied Sciences Management	29.06
Reserved	29.05

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.