Phys Ed

Types of Degrees Phys Ed Majors Are Getting

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

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	48,205
Master’s Degree	9,192
Associate Degree	5,648
Basic Certificate	1,248
Undergraduate Certificate	480
Graduate Certificate	307
Doctor’s Degree	305

What Phys Ed Majors Need to Know

People with careers related to phys ed were asked what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. They weighted these areas on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the highest.

Knowledge Areas for Phys Ed Majors

According to O*NET survey takers, a major in phys ed should prepare you for careers in which you will need to be knowledgeable in the following areas:

• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• 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.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
• 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.

Skills for Phys Ed Majors

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

• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.
• 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.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Abilities for Phys Ed Majors

Phys Ed majors often go into careers where the following abilities are vital:

• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.

What Can You Do With a Phys Ed Major?

People with a phys ed degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Athletes and Sports Competitors	7.6%	$50,650
Athletic Trainers	22.7%	$47,510
Coaches and Scouts	12.9%	$33,780
Exercise Physiologists	13.2%	$49,270
Fitness Trainers and Aerobics Instructors	10.0%	$39,820
Recreation and Fitness Studies Professors	9.7%	$62,620

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Phys Ed?

This is one of the most frequently chosen undergraduate majors. It is the 9th most popular in the country with 49,843 students graduating with a bachelor’s in phys ed in 2021. According to recent stats this major attracts about equal numbers of men and women. Roughly 48% of the graduates are women, and 52% are men.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

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

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	2,534
Black or African American	5,864
Hispanic or Latino	8,077
White	26,890
International Students	1,201
Other Races/Ethnicities	3,639

Geographic Diversity

Americans aren’t the only ones with an interest in Phys Ed. About 2.5% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Phys Ed

Some careers associated with phys ed require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to phys ed have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Less than a High School Diploma	5.9%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	5.9%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	6.4%
Some College Courses	2.3%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	7.9%
Bachelor’s Degree	27.4%
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.	1.9%
Master’s Degree	30.5%
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.	1.3%
Doctoral Degree	10.4%

Online Phys Ed 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)	109	5
Certificate (2-4 Years)	5	0
Associate’s Degree	537	37
Bachelor’s Degree	79	28
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	528	130
Post-Master’s	13	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	65	1
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	4	1
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	1	1

Majors Related to Phys Ed

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

Major	Number of Grads
Recreation Administration	2,492
Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies	2,361
Outdoor Education	277
Other Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies	232

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

More about our data sources and methodologies.