---

Community Organization & Advocacy

Types of Degrees Community Organization & Advocacy Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing Community Organization & Advocacy can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	10
Associate’s Degree	241
Bachelor’s Degree	1,615
Master’s Degree	760
Doctor’s Degree	25

What Community Organization & Advocacy Majors Need to Know

Coursework for Community Organization & Advocacy emphasize a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Community Organization & Advocacy graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing Community Organization & Advocacy emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 4.9 / 5; level 6.2 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Administration and Management — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Administrative — Importance 3.7 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Personnel and Human Resources — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 3.6 / 7.

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

Skills

The skill set built by a Community Organization & Advocacy program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Social Perceptiveness — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Community Organization & Advocacy careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Community Organization & Advocacy graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Getting Information	4.6 / 7
Working with Computers	4.6 / 7
Performing for or Working Directly with the Public	4.4 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.4 / 7
Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards	4.4 / 7
Processing Information	4.3 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	4.3 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.2 / 7
Communicating with People Outside the Organization	4.0 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.0 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Community Organization & Advocacy professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Dynamics	Enterprise resource planning ERP software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Microsoft Access	Data base user interface and query software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
GE Healthcare Centricity EMR	Medical software	—
Corel WinZip	Data compression software	—
Resource and patient management system RPMS patient registration software	Data base reporting software	—
Client assessment software	Analytical or scientific software	—

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

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Community Organization & Advocacy graduates include:

• Case Manager
• Medicaid Eligibility Advisor
• Enrollment Coordinator
• Eligibility and Occupancy Interviewer
• Housing Specialist
• Unemployment Examiner
• Eligibility Examiner
• Employment Specialist
• Contact Officer
• Benefits Program Tech (Benefits Program Technician)
• Employment Adjudicator
• Program Specialist
• Enrollment Representative (Enrollment Rep)
• Welfare Interviewer
• Unemployment Benefits Claims Taker

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Community Organization & Advocacy graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Bachelor’s degree	29.4%
High school diploma or equivalent	22.0%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	20.5%
Some college courses	16.0%
Master’s degree	10.5%
Post-master’s certificate	1.6%

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

Who Is Earning a Degree in Community Organization & Advocacy?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 81.2% of Community Organization & Advocacy degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	2,152	81.2%
Men	499	18.8%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Community Organization & Advocacy graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	1,253	47.3%
Asian	51	1.9%
Hispanic or Latino	410	15.5%
Black or African American	540	20.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native	28	1.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	8	0.3%
Two or More Races	88	3.3%
Race Unknown	200	7.5%
International Students	73	2.8%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Community Organization & Advocacy Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of Community Organization & Advocacy 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	$43,844
4 years	$44,244
5 years	$50,479

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $50,479 — roughly 15% above the 1-year mark.

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

Online Community Organization & Advocacy Programs

Fully online options is tracked by IPEDS for Community Organization & Advocacy. 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
Associate’s	1	1
Bachelor’s	12	7
Master’s	10	5

^{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 Community Organization & Advocacy Worth It?

Strictly by the federal earnings tracker, Community Organization & Advocacy graduates earn a median of $44,244 four years after completion — roughly 16% 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
Social Services Public Administration	44
Public Administration and Social Service Professions, Other	44.99
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AND SOCIAL SERVICE PROFESSIONS	44.00
Public Administration	44.04
Public Policy Analysis	44.05
Social Work	44.07

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.