Public Administration & Social Service

Types of Degrees Public Administration & Social Service Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many public administration & social service graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	51,655
Bachelor’s Degree	32,817
Associate Degree	6,052
Graduate Certificate	2,497
Doctor’s Degree	1,692
Basic Certificate	1,569
Undergraduate Certificate	412

What Public Administration & Social Service Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to public administration & social service and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.

Knowledge Areas for Public Administration & Social Service Majors

Public Administration & Social Service 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

Skills for Public Administration & Social Service Majors

When studying public administration & social service, 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:

• 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.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Abilities for Public Administration & Social Service Majors

A major in public administration & social service will prepare for your careers in which the following abilities are important:

• 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.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.

What Can You Do With a Public Administration & Social Service Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with public administration & social service:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Compliance Managers	8.0%	$107,480
Education Professors	10.3%	$64,780
Eligibility Interviewers, Government Programs	5.9%	$46,020
Health Specialties Professors	25.9%	$97,370
Healthcare Social Workers	20.1%	$56,200
Marriage and Family Therapists	23.4%	$50,090
Political Scientists	2.7%	$117,570
Probation Officers and Correctional Treatment Specialists	5.7%	$53,020
Regulatory Affairs Managers	8.0%	$107,480
Social Work Professors	9.4%	$68,300
Social Workers	8.3%	$63,140
Transportation Planners	6.7%	$81,340

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Administration & Social Service?

The major attracts more women than men. About 84% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of public administration & social service majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	1,100
Black or African American	5,725
Hispanic or Latino	6,951
White	16,021
International Students	266
Other Races/Ethnicities	2,754

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Public Administration & Social Service, too. About 0.8% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Public Administration & Social Service

Some careers associated with public administration & social service 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 public administration & social service careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Less than a High School Diploma	0.3%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	8.9%
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)	1.6%
Some College Courses	3.8%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	5.8%
Bachelor’s Degree	35.5%
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.	3.0%
Master’s Degree	21.8%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	4.3%
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.	0.3%
Doctoral Degree	13.9%
Post-Doctoral Training	1.1%

Online Public Administration & Social Service 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)	268	26
Certificate (2-4 Years)	6	2
Associate’s Degree	998	162
Bachelor’s Degree	626	196
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	1,994	526
Post-Master’s	120	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	418	44
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	28	8
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	2	0

Majors Related to Public Administration & Social Service

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to public administration & social service.

Major	Number of Grads
Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies	70,747

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 University of the Fraser Valley under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.