Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication

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Total Degrees
Awarded in 2024

4,077

declining 3.82%

Median In-State
Public Tuition

$8,355

growing 3.3%

Median Out-of-State
Private Tuition

$36,150

growing 4.49%

Average Wage

$92,774

growing 2.82%

People in Workforce

2.6M

growing 3.21%

Average Employee Age

41.1

growing 0.588%

About

In 2024, the locations with the highest concentration of Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication degree recipients are Boulder, CO, Tampa, FL, and Westchester, FL. In 2024, the locations with a relatively high number of Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication degree recipients are Babson Park, FL, River Falls, WI, and Franklin, IN. The most common degree awarded to students studying Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication is a bachelors degree.

Communications Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication

Institutions

Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication and the types of students that study this field. University of Colorado Boulder awards the most degrees in Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication in the US, but Universidad del Sagrado Corazon and Webber International University have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication.

Tuition costs for Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication majors are, on average, $8,355 for in-state public colleges, and $36,150 for out of state private colleges.

The most common sector, by number of institutions, that offers Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication programs are Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above institutions (123 total). The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded, is Public, 4-year or above (2,482 completions).

Institutions

Institution with the Most Degrees Awarded in Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication (2024)

University of Colorado Boulder
379 degrees awarded
Florida International University
210 degrees awarded
University of South Florida
173 degrees awarded

The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded in Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication, is Public, 4-year or above (2,482 completions in 2024).

The following chart shows the share of universities that offer Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication programs, by the total number of completions, colored and grouped by their sector.

Tuition Costs for Common Institutions

$8,355

Median In-State Public

$36,150

Median Out of State Private

University of Colorado Boulder has the most Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication degree recipients, with 379 degrees awarded in 2024.

The following bar chart shows the state tuition for the top 5 institutions with the most degrees awarded in Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication.

Specialized Colleges

Highest Concentration Institution

Out of all institutions that offer Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication programs and have at least 5 graduates in those programs, Universidad del Sagrado Corazon has the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication, with 10.5%.

Degrees Awarded by County

Counties with the Most Degrees Awarded in Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication

Boulder County, CO
379 degrees awarded
Hillsborough County, FL
283 degrees awarded
Miami-Dade County, FL
218 degrees awarded

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest number of degrees awarded in Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication by year.

Employment

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 $92,774 and the most common occupations are Other managers, Marketing managers, and Elementary & middle school teachers.

The industry that employs the most Communications majors is Elementary & secondary schools, though the highest paying industry, by average wage, is Nonferrous metal (except aluminum) production & processing.

Yearly Income for Common Jobs

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication is from the 2 Digit Course Communications.

$92,774

Average Wage in Workforce

± $1,421

2.82%

1 Year Growth

± 2.13%

The average salary for Communications majors is $92,774 and the most common occupations are Other managers, Marketing managers, and Elementary & middle school teachers.

This chart shows the average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Communications majors.

Highest Paying Locations

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication is from the 2 Digit Course Communications.

Highest Paying Pumas

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.

Most Common

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication is from the 2 Digit Course Communications.

The most common occupations for Communications majors, by number of employees, are Other managers, Marketing managers, and Elementary & middle school teachers.

Most Specialized

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication is from the 2 Digit Course Communications.

Compared to other majors, there are an unusually high number of Communications majors working as News analysts, reporters & correspondents, Public relations specialists, and Public relations & fundraising managers.

Highest Paid

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication is from the 2 Digit Course Communications.

The highest paid occupations by median income for Communications majors are Surgeons, Physicians, and Nuclear medicine technologists and medical dosimetrists.

Occupations by Share

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication is from the 2 Digit Course Communications.

2.6M

2024 Workforce

± 39,231

3.21%

1 Year Growth

± 2.09%

The number of Communications graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 3.21%, from 2.52M in 2023 to 2.6M in 2024.

The largest single share of Communications graduates go on to work as Other managers (5.17%). This chart shows the various jobs filled by those with a major in Communications by share of the total number of graduates.

Most Common

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication is from the 2 Digit Course Communications.

The most common industries that employ Communications majors, by number of employees, are Elementary & secondary schools, Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges, and Computer Systems Design.

Highest Paid

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication is from the 2 Digit Course Communications.

The highest paying industries of Communications majors, by average wage, are Nonferrous metal (except aluminum) production & processing, Oil & gas extraction, and Internet publishing, broadcasting & web search portals.

Industries by Share

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication is from the 2 Digit Course Communications.

2.6M

2024 Workforce

± 39,231

3.21%

1 Year Growth

± 2.09%

The number of Communications graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 3.21%, from 2.52M in 2023 to 2.6M in 2024.

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.

Specialty Locations

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication is from the 2 Digit Course Communications.

PUMAS with a relatively high number of Communications majors

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

Diversity

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 41.1.

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 (2,344 students).

Workforce Age

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication is from the 2 Digit Course Communications.

41.1

Average Age in 2024

± 0.188 Years

0.588%

1 Year Change

± 0.647%

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 29 years old, which represent 3.19% and 3.16% of the population, respectively.

Degrees Awarded

The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Certificate of at least 1 but less than 2 academic years.

Workforce Degrees

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication is from the 2 Digit Course Communications.

The most common degree types held by the working population in Communications are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Professional degree.

Sex Imbalance for Common Institutions

Female (75.8%)

Most Common Sex with a Degree in this Field

This chart shows the granted degrees by sex at the 5 institutions that graduate the most students in Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication.

Race & Ethnicity by Degrees Awarded

Degrees

Most Common Race or Ethnicity

White
2,344 degrees awarded in 2024
Hispanic or Latino
754 degrees awarded in 2024
Black or African American
360 degrees awarded in 2024

This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication for each race & ethnicity.

In 2024, White students earned the largest share of the degrees with this major.

Race & Ethnicity by Sex

Degrees

Most Common Race/Ethnicity and Sex Combination

White Female
1,408 degrees awarded
White Male
466 degrees awarded
Hispanic or Latino Female
452 degrees awarded

This chart illustrates the differences by sex for each race & ethnicity of Bachelors Degree recipients in Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication.

White Female students, who earn most of the degrees in this field, are the most common combination of race/ethnicity and sex.

Global Diversity

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication is from the 2 Digit Course Communications.

Most Common Countries of Origin

Mexico
19,582 degree recipients
India
16,989 degree recipients
Philippines
14,786 degree recipients

High Relative Number of Students

Samoa
7 times more than expected
Antigua & Barbuda
5.27 times more than expected
Australia
4.47 times more than expected

There are a relatively high number of people that were born in Samoa that hold Communications degrees (7 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 (19,582 degree recipients).

Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication majors need many skills, but most especially Social Perceptiveness. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication majors need more than the average amount of Management of Financial Resources, Management of Material Resources, and Negotiation.

These two visualizations, one a radial chart and one a bar chart, show the same information, a rating of how necessary the following skills are for Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication majors. Toggle between "value" and "RCA" to see the absolute rating of that skill (value) and the revealed comparative advantage (RCA), or how much greater or lesser that skill's rating is than the average. The longer the bar or the closer the line comes to the circumference of the circle, the more important that skill is. The importance of Management of Financial Resources is very distinctive for majors, but the Social Perceptiveness, Active Listening, and Speaking are the three most important skills for people in the field.