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Mortuary Science Major

Mortuary Science

211 Bachelor's Degrees Annually
#251 in Popularity

Types of Degrees Mortuary Science Majors Are Getting

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

Education Level Number of Grads
Associate Degree 1,656
Undergraduate Certificate 373
Basic Certificate 220
Bachelor’s Degree 202

What Mortuary Science Majors Need to Know

People with careers related to mortuary science 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 Mortuary Science Majors

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

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  • 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.
  • 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.
  • English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
  • Clerical - Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
  • 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.

Skills for Mortuary Science Majors

When studying mortuary science, you’ll learn many skills that will help you be successful in a wide range of jobs - even those that do not require a degree in the field. The following is a list of some of the most common skills needed for careers associated with this major:

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  • Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
  • 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.
  • Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
  • Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
  • Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others’ actions.

Abilities for Mortuary Science Majors

A major in mortuary science will prepare for your careers in which the following abilities are important:

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  • 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.
  • 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.
  • Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
  • Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.

What Can You Do With a Mortuary Science Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with mortuary science:

Job Title Job Growth Rate Median Salary
Funeral Service Managers 7.0% $79,180
Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Directors 3.8% $52,650

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Mortuary Science?

202 Bachelor's Degrees Annually
78% Percent Women
26% Percent Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
This is a less frequently chosen undergraduate major. Only 211 students graduated with a bachelor’s degree in funeral & mortuary science in 2021, making it rank #251 in popularity. The major attracts more women than men. About 78% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

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

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Race/Ethnicity Number of Grads
Asian 2
Black or African American 22
Hispanic or Latino 12
White 148
International Students 0
Other Races/Ethnicities 18

Some careers associated with mortuary science 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.

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

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Education Level Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED) 3.0%
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) 9.4%
Some College Courses 2.7%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree) 64.0%
Bachelor’s Degree 13.5%
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. 4.0%
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. 4.5%

Online Mortuary Science 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) 20 6
Certificate (2-4 Years) 2 1
Associate’s Degree 66 6
Bachelor’s Degree 0 0
Post-Baccalaureate 0 0
Master’s Degree 0 0
Post-Master’s 0 0
Doctor’s Degree (Research) 0 0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice) 0 0
Doctor’s Degree (Other) 0 0

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

Major Number of Grads
Cosmetology 132,103
Culinary Arts 22,680
Casino Operations and Services 619
Other Personal & Culinary Services 84

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.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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