Communication and Media Studies
Contains Stem Majors
Add ComparisonIn 2021, the locations with the highest concentration of Communication and Media Studies degree recipients are New York, NY, Los Angeles, CA, and Boston, MA. The most common degree awarded to students studying Communication and Media Studies is a bachelors degree.
Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Communication and Media Studies and the types of students that study this field. California State University-Fullerton awards the most degrees in Communication and Media Studies in the US, but John Paul the Great Catholic University and Lasell University have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Communication and Media Studies.
The most common sector, by number of institutions, that offers Communication and Media Studies programs are Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above institutions (669 total). The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded, is Public, 4-year or above (44,628 completions).
The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded in Communication and Media Studies, is Public, 4-year or above (44,628 completions in 2021).
The following chart shows the share of universities that offer Communication and Media Studies programs, by the total number of completions, colored and grouped by their sector.
California State University-Fullerton has the most Communication and Media Studies degree recipients, with 777 degrees awarded in 2021.
The following bar chart shows the state tuition for the top 5 institutions with the most degrees awarded in Communication and Media Studies.
Out of all institutions that offer Communication and Media Studies programs and have at least 5 graduates in those programs, John Paul the Great Catholic University has the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Communication and Media Studies, with 76.4%.
This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest number of degrees awarded in Communication and Media Studies by year.
This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest growth in degrees awarded for Communication and Media Studies.
Information on the businesses and industries that employ Communications graduates and on wages and locations for those in the field.
The average salary for Communications majors is $79,148 and the most common occupations are Other managers, Elementary & middle school teachers, and Marketing managers.
The industry that employs the most Communications majors is Elementary & secondary schools, though the highest paying industry, by average wage, is Footwear manufacturing.
The average salary for Communications majors is $79,148 and the most common occupations are Other managers, Elementary & middle school teachers, and Marketing managers.
This chart shows the average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Communications majors.
This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States colored by the average salary of Communications majors.
Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Communications majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.
The most common occupations Communications majors, by number of employees, are Other managers, Elementary & middle school teachers, and Marketing managers.
Compared to other majors, there are an unusually high number of Communications majors working as News analysts, reporters, and journalists, Public relations specialists, and Public relations and fundraising managers.
The highest paid occupations by median income for Communications majors are Surgeons, Nuclear medicine technologists and medical dosimetrists, and Physicians.
The number of Communications graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 4.1%, from 2.26M in 2020 to 2.35M in 2021.
The largest single share of Communications graduates go on to work as Other managers (4.82%). This chart shows the various jobs filled by those with a major in Communications by share of the total number of graduates.
The most common industries that employ Communications majors, by number of employees, are Elementary & secondary schools, Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges, and Advertising, public relations & related services.
The highest paying industries of Communications majors, by average wage, are Footwear manufacturing, Nonferrous metal (except aluminum) production & processing, and Cutlery & hand tool manufacturing.
The number of Communications graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 4.1%, from 2.26M in 2020 to 2.35M in 2021.
The industry which employs the most Communications graduates by share is Elementary & secondary schools, followed by Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges. This visualization shows the industries that hire those who major in Communications.
This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States where there are a relatively high population of Communications majors.
Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Communications majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.
Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Communications in the United States.
The average age of a person in the workforce with a degree in Communications is 40.4.
The most common degree type these workers hold is a Bachelors Degree. Female employees are more likely to hold Communications degrees, and White students are the most common race/ethnicty group awarded degrees in Communications (35,882 students).
This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Communications. The most common ages of employees with this major are 30 and 31 years old, which represent 3.31% and 3.28% of the population, respectively.
The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Communication and Media Studies are Bachelors Degree, Associates Degree, and Masters Degree.
The most common degree types held by the working population in Communications are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Professional degree.
This chart shows the granted degrees by sex at the 5 institutions that graduate the most students in Communication and Media Studies.
This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Communication and Media Studies for each race & ethnicity. White students earned the largest share of the degrees with this major.
This chart illustrates the differences by sex for each race & ethnicity of Bachelors Degree recipients in Communication and Media Studies.
White Female students, who earn most of the degrees in this field, are the most common combination of race/ethnicity and sex.
There are a relatively high number of people that were born in Antigua & Barbuda that hold Communications degrees (6.58 times more than expected), and the most common country of origin by total numbers for non-US students earning a degree in this field is Mexico (17,185 degree recipients).
