Gerontology

Types of Degrees Gerontology Majors Are Getting

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

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	336
Graduate Certificate	234
Basic Certificate	177
Bachelor’s Degree	163
Doctor’s Degree	20
Associate Degree	17
Undergraduate Certificate	4

What Gerontology Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, gerontology 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 Gerontology Majors

Gerontology majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Skills for Gerontology Majors

A major in gerontology prepares you for careers in which the following skill-sets are crucial:

• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• 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.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.

Abilities for Gerontology Majors

As you progress with your gerontology degree, there are several abilities you should pick up that will help you in whatever related career you choose. These abilities include:

• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

What Can You Do With a Gerontology Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with gerontology:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists	13.4%	$84,810
Transportation Planners	6.7%	$81,340

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Gerontology?

This is a less frequently chosen undergraduate major. Only 287 students graduated with a bachelor’s degree in gerontology in 2021, making it rank #238 in popularity. This major is dominated by women with about 83% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of gerontology majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	17
Black or African American	18
Hispanic or Latino	22
White	89
International Students	2
Other Races/Ethnicities	15

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Gerontology, too. About 1.2% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Gerontology

Some careers associated with gerontology 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 gerontology careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Bachelor’s Degree	34.6%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	0.7%
Master’s Degree	22.4%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession.	0.1%
Doctoral Degree	16.6%
Post-Doctoral Training	26.0%

Online Gerontology 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)	11	2
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	12	3
Bachelor’s Degree	74	16
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	42	10
Post-Master’s	19	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	15	1
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Gerontology

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to gerontology.

Major	Number of Grads
Other Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies	29,596
Biological & Physical Science	28,469
Interdisciplinary Studies	9,341
Data Analytics	7,294
International Studies	6,458
Nutrition Science	5,514
Behavioral Science	4,777
Data Science	4,416
Sustainability Science	4,382
Cognitive Science	2,959
Human Computer Interaction	2,324
Natural Sciences	2,275
Computational Science	2,167
Human Biology	2,016
Mathematics & Computer Science	1,489
Systems Theory	1,080
Peace Studies & Conflict Resolution	1,074
Museum Studies	892
Geography and Environmental Studies	809
Science, Technology & Society	805
Dispute Resolution	652
Multicultural & Diversity Studies	584
Marine Science	436
Historic Preservation	423
Cultural Studies & Analysis	375
Classical & Ancient Studies	290
Biopsychology	208
Philosophy, Politics, and Economics	153
Mathematical Economics	139
Climate Science	110
Medieval Studies	105
Environmental Geosciences	102
Economics and Computer Science	89
History and Political Science	68
Maritime Studies	68
Holocaust Studies	67
Accounting & Computer Science	55
Digital Humanities and Textual Studies	54
Anthrozoology	47
Cultural Studies and Comparative Literature	40
Earth Systems Science	25
Economics and Foreign Language/Literature	12
Thanatology	8
Linguistics and Computer Science	4
History and Language/Literature	1
Geoarcheaology	1
Linguistics and Anthropology	1
Geobiology	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 Photo by Chalmers Butterfield under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.