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Cultural Resource & Policy

Types of Degrees Cultural Resource & Policy Majors Are Earning

People majoring in Cultural Resource & Policy have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Master’s Degree	59

What Cultural Resource & Policy Majors Need to Know

Coursework for Cultural Resource & Policy develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Cultural Resource & Policy graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing Cultural Resource & Policy emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• English Language — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5.1 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Administration and Management — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Computers and Electronics — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.

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

Skills

The skill set developed in a Cultural Resource & Policy program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.

Abilities

Abilities most relevant to Cultural Resource & Policy careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Oral Expression — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Near Vision — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Cultural Resource & Policy graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Getting Information	4.5 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	4.4 / 7
Working with Computers	4.3 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.3 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.2 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	4.2 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.2 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.1 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.1 / 7
Communicating with People Outside the Organization	4.1 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Cultural Resource & Policy professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Word processing software	Word processing software	—
Microsoft Access	Data base user interface and query software	—
FileMaker Pro	Data base user interface and query software	—
Adobe Acrobat	Document management software	—
Microsoft Windows	Operating system software	—
Database software	Data base user interface and query software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Cultural Resource & Policy graduates include:

• Registrar
• Film Archivist
• Accessioning Archivist
• Records Manager
• Document Scanner
• Digital Asset Archivist
• Museum Archivist
• Records Specialist
• Reference Archivist
• Document Management Technician (Document Management Tech)
• State Archivist
• Digitization Assistant
• Records Associate
• Archivist
• Archives Technician (Archives Tech)

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Cultural Resource & Policy graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Master’s degree	44.6%
Bachelor’s degree	24.5%
Doctoral degree	14.2%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	3.5%
Post-master’s certificate	3.5%
High school diploma or equivalent	2.7%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	2.4%
Postsecondary certificate	1.7%
Some college courses	1.5%
Post-doctoral training	0.9%
First professional degree	0.3%
Less than a high school diploma	0.2%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in Cultural Resource & Policy?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 69.5% of Cultural Resource & Policy degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	41	69.5%
Men	18	30.5%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Cultural Resource & Policy graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	40	67.8%
Hispanic or Latino	4	6.8%
Black or African American	6	10.2%
American Indian / Alaska Native	3	5.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	1	1.7%
Two or More Races	3	5.1%
Race Unknown	2	3.4%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Cultural Resource & Policy Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of Cultural Resource & Policy graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. These numbers tend to grow steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$44,600
4 years	$46,364
5 years	$52,542

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $52,542 — roughly 18% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online Cultural Resource & Policy Programs

Fully online options are documented by IPEDS for Cultural Resource & Policy. 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	2	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.}

Is a Degree in Cultural Resource & Policy Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Cultural Resource & Policy graduates earn a median of $46,364 four years after completion — roughly 22% 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
Historic Preservation and Conservation	30.12
Historic Preservation and Conservation, General	30.1201
Historic Preservation and Conservation, Other	30.1299
Digital Humanities	30.5202
History and Language/Literature	30.4501
Textual Studies	30.5203
Ancient Studies/Civilization	30.2201
Classical and Ancient Studies, Other	30.2299

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.