Liberal Arts & Humanities

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Total Degrees
Awarded in 2017

503,384

growing 3.33%

Median In-State
Public Tuition

$6,530

growing 3%

Median Out-of-State
Private Tuition

$28,980

growing 2.95%

Average Wage

$72,025

growing 5.39%

People in Workforce

669,841

growing 2.81%

Average Employee Age

44.3

declining 0.278%

About

The locations with the highest concentration of Liberal Arts & Humanities degree recipients are Miami, FL, New York, NY, and Albuquerque, NM. The locations with a relatively high number of Liberal Arts & Humanities degree recipients are Annapolis, MD, Oxford, GA, and St. Martin, OH. The most common degree awarded to students studying Liberal Arts & Humanities is a associates degree.

Photo by Michael D Beckwith

Institutions

Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Liberal Arts & Humanities and the types of students that study this field. Miami Dade College awards the most degrees in Liberal Arts & Humanities in the US, but New Mexico Military Institute and Shorter College have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Liberal Arts & Humanities.

Tuition costs for Liberal Arts & Humanities majors are, on average, $6,530 for in-state public colleges, and $28,980 for out of state private colleges.

The most common sector, by number of institutions, that offers Liberal Arts & Humanities programs are Public, 2-year institutions (818 total). The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded, is Public, 2-year (329,394 completions).

Institutions

Institution with the Most Degrees Awarded in Liberal Arts & Humanities

The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded in Liberal Arts & Humanities, is Public, 2-year (329,394 completions).

The following chart shows the share of universities that offer Liberal Arts & Humanities programs, by the total number of completions, colored and grouped by their sector.

Tuition Costs for Common Institutions

$6,530

Median In-State Public

$28,980

Median Out of State Private

Miami Dade College has the most Liberal Arts & Humanities degree recipients, with 8,089 degrees awarded in 2017.

The following bar chart shows the state tuition for the top 5 institutions with the most degrees awarded in Liberal Arts & Humanities.

Specialized Colleges

Highest Concentration Institution

Out of all institutions that offer Liberal Arts & Humanities programs and have at least 5 graduates in those programs, New Mexico Military Institute and Shorter College have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Liberal Arts & Humanities, with 100% and 100%, respectively.

Degrees Awarded by County

Counties with the Most Degrees Awarded in Liberal Arts & Humanities

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest number of degrees awarded in Liberal Arts & Humanities by year.

Growth in Awarded Degrees

Counties with the Fastest Growing Number of Degrees Awarded

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest growth in degrees awarded for Liberal Arts & Humanities.

Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Liberal Arts & Humanities graduates and on wages and locations for those in the field.

The average salary for Liberal Arts & Humanities majors is $72,025 and the most common occupations are Elementary & middle school teachers, Other managers, and Lawyers, & judges, magistrates, & other judicial workers.

The industry that employs the most Liberal Arts & Humanities majors is Elementary & secondary schools, though the highest paying industry, by average wage, is Management of companies & enterprises.

Wages

Yearly Income for Common Jobs

$72,025

Average Wage in Workforce

± $2,387

5.39%

1 Year Growth

± 4.37%

This chart shows the average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Liberal Arts & Humanities majors.

Highest Paying Locations

Highest Paying Pumas

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States colored by the average salary of Liberal Arts & Humanities majors.

Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Liberal Arts & Humanities majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.

Occupations

Occupations by Share

669,841

2018 Workforce

± 20,049

2.81%

1 Year Growth

± 4.15%

The number of Liberal Arts & Humanities graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 2.81%, from 651,510 in 2017 to 669,841 in 2018.

The largest single share of Liberal Arts & Humanities graduates go on to work as Elementary & middle school teachers (11%). This chart shows the various jobs filled by those with a major in Liberal Arts & Humanities by share of the total number of graduates.

Industries

Most Common

The most common industries that employ Liberal Arts & Humanities majors, by number of employees, are Elementary & secondary schools, Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges, and Restaurants & Food Services.

Highest Paid

The highest paying industries of Liberal Arts & Humanities majors, by average wage, are Management of companies & enterprises, Apparel, piece goods, & notions merchant wholesalers, and Hardware, & plumbing & heating equipment, & supplies merchant wholesalers.

Industries by Share

669,841

2018 Workforce

± 20,049

2.81%

1 Year Growth

± 4.15%

The number of Liberal Arts & Humanities graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 2.81%, from 651,510 in 2017 to 669,841 in 2018.

The industry which employs the most Liberal Arts & Humanities 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 Liberal Arts & Humanities.

Specialty Locations

PUMAS with a relatively high number of Liberal Arts & Humanities majors

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States where there are a relatively high population of Liberal Arts & Humanities majors.

Diversity

Demographic information on those who earn a degree in Liberal Arts & Humanities in the US. The average age of a person in the workforce with a degree in Liberal Arts & Humanities is 44.3, and the most common degree type these workers hold is a Associates Degree. Female employees are more likely to hold Liberal Arts & Humanities degrees, and White students earn the majority (259,883) of the degrees.

Workforce Age

44.3

Average Age in 2018

± 0.387 Years

0.278%

1 Year Change

± 1.24%

This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Liberal Arts & Humanities. The most common ages of employees with this major are 40 and 38 years old, which represent 2.98% and 2.92% of the population, respectively.

Degrees Awarded

The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Liberal Arts & Humanities are Associates Degree, 1 to 2 Year Postsecondary Certificate, and Bachelors Degree.

Workforce Degrees

The most common degree types held by the working population in Liberal Arts & Humanities are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Professional degree.

Gender Imbalance for Common Institutions

Female (61.9%)

Most Common Gender with a Degree in this Field

This chart shows the granted degrees by gender at the 5 institutions that graduate the most students in Liberal Arts & Humanities.

Race & Ethnicity by Degrees Awarded

Most Common Race or Ethnicity

White
259,883 degrees awarded
Hispanic or Latino
109,406 degrees awarded
Black or African American
59,364 degrees awarded

This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Liberal Arts & Humanities for each race & ethnicity. White students earned the largest share of the degrees with this major.

Race & Ethnicity by Gender

Most Common Race/Ethnicity and Gender Combination

White Female
16,506 degree-grads_ethnicity_genders awarded
White Male
9,907 degree-grads_ethnicity_genders awarded
Hispanic or Latino Female
4,202 degree-grads_ethnicity_genders awarded

This chart illustrates the differences by gender for each race & ethnicity of Bachelors Degree recipients in Liberal Arts & Humanities. White Female students, who earn most of the degree-grads_ethnicity_genders in this field, are the most common combination of race/ethnicity and gender.

Global Diversity

Most Common Countries of Origin

India
13,720 degree recipients
Mexico
7,906 degree recipients
Philippines
4,496 degree recipients

High Relative Number of Students

Pakistan
5.56 times more than expected
Bangladesh
4.71 times more than expected
Nepal
3.12 times more than expected

There are a relatively high number of people that were born in Pakistan that hold Liberal Arts & Humanities degrees (5.56 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 India (13,720 degree recipients).

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