Social Sciences

Contains Stem Majors

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Total Degrees
Awarded in 2020

205,653

growing 1.11%

Median In-State
Public Tuition

$7,593

growing 2.44%

Median Out-of-State
Private Tuition

$39,968

growing 2.48%

Average Wage

$97,137

growing 1.02%

People in Workforce

3.95M

growing 3.28%

Average Employee Age

43.2

growing 0.0639%

About

The locations with the highest concentration of Social Sciences degree recipients are New York, NY, Los Angeles, CA, and Washington, DC. The locations with a relatively high number of Social Sciences degree recipients are Purcellville, VA, Easton, PA, and Hamilton, NY. The most common degree awarded to students studying Social Sciences is a bachelors degree.

Photo by kcxd

Institutions

Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Social Sciences and the types of students that study this field. University of California-Los Angeles awards the most degrees in Social Sciences in the US, but Pardee RAND Graduate School and Institute of World Politics have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Social Sciences.

Tuition costs for Social Sciences majors are, on average, $7,593 for in-state public colleges, and $39,968 for out of state private colleges.

The most common sector, by number of institutions, that offers Social Sciences programs are Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above institutions (806 total). The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded, is Public, 4-year or above (120,439 completions).

Institutions

Institution with the Most Degrees Awarded in Social Sciences

The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded in Social Sciences, is Public, 4-year or above (120,439 completions).

The following chart shows the share of universities that offer Social Sciences programs, by the total number of completions, colored and grouped by their sector.

Tuition Costs for Common Institutions

$7,593

Median In-State Public

$39,968

Median Out of State Private

University of California-Los Angeles has the most Social Sciences degree recipients, with 2,910 degrees awarded in 2020.

The following bar chart shows the state tuition for the top 5 institutions with the most degrees awarded in Social Sciences.

Specialized Colleges

Highest Concentration Institution

Out of all institutions that offer Social Sciences programs and have at least 5 graduates in those programs, Pardee RAND Graduate School has the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Social Sciences, with 100%.

Degrees Awarded by County

Counties with the Most Degrees Awarded in Social Sciences

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest number of degrees awarded in Social Sciences 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 Social Sciences.

Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Social Sciences graduates and on wages and locations for those in the field.

The average salary for Social Sciences majors is $97,137 and the most common occupations are Lawyers, & judges, magistrates, & other judicial workers, Other managers, and Postsecondary teachers.

The industry that employs the most Social Sciences majors is Elementary & secondary schools, though the highest paying industry, by average wage, is Nonmetallic mineral mining & quarrying.

Wages

Yearly Income for Common Jobs

$97,137

Average Wage in Workforce

± $1,319

1.02%

1 Year Growth

± 1.94%

The average salary for Social Sciences majors is $97,137 and the most common occupations are Lawyers, & judges, magistrates, & other judicial workers, Other managers, and Postsecondary teachers.

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

Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Social Sciences 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

3.95M

2019 Workforce

± 48,136

3.28%

1 Year Growth

± 1.68%

The number of Social Sciences graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 3.28%, from 3.82M in 2018 to 3.95M in 2019.

The largest single share of Social Sciences graduates go on to work as Lawyers, & judges, magistrates, & other judicial workers (7.86%). This chart shows the various jobs filled by those with a major in Social Sciences by share of the total number of graduates.

Industries

Most Common

The most common industries that employ Social Sciences majors, by number of employees, are Elementary & secondary schools, Legal services, and Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges.

Highest Paid

The highest paying industries of Social Sciences majors, by average wage, are Nonmetallic mineral mining & quarrying, Aerospace products & parts manufacturing, and Household appliance manufacturing.

Industries by Share

3.95M

2019 Workforce

± 48,136

3.28%

1 Year Growth

± 1.68%

The number of Social Sciences graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 3.28%, from 3.82M in 2018 to 3.95M in 2019.

The industry which employs the most Social Sciences graduates by share is Elementary & secondary schools, followed by Legal services. This visualization shows the industries that hire those who major in Social Sciences.

Specialty Locations

PUMAS with a relatively high number of Social Sciences majors

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

Diversity

Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Social Sciences in the United States.

The average age of a person in the workforce with a degree in Social Sciences is 43.2.

The most common degree type these workers hold is a Bachelors Degree. Female employees are more likely to hold Social Sciences degrees, and White students are the most common race/ethnicty group awarded degrees in Social Sciences (97,774 students).

Workforce Age

43.2

Average Age in 2019

± 0.165 Years

0.0639%

1 Year Change

± 0.545%

This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Social Sciences. The most common ages of employees with this major are 35 and 30 years old, which represent 3.11% and 2.95% of the population, respectively.

Degrees Awarded

The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Social Sciences are Bachelors Degree, Associates Degree, and Masters Degree.

Workforce Degrees

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

Sex Imbalance for Common Institutions

Female (55%)

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 Social Sciences.

Race & Ethnicity by Degrees Awarded

Most Common Race or Ethnicity

White
97,774 degrees awarded
Hispanic or Latino
41,051 degrees awarded
Non-resident Alien
19,017 degrees awarded

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

Race & Ethnicity by Sex

Most Common Race/Ethnicity and Sex Combination

White Male
39,202 degrees awarded
White Female
39,138 degrees awarded
Hispanic or Latino Female
17,089 degrees awarded

This chart illustrates the differences by sex for each race & ethnicity of Bachelors Degree recipients in Social Sciences. White Male students, who earn most of the degrees in this field, are the most common combination of race/ethnicity and sex.

Global Diversity

Most Common Countries of Origin

India
47,521 degree recipients
China
39,464 degree recipients
Mexico
32,588 degree recipients

High Relative Number of Students

Belgium
4.19 times more than expected
Eastern Africa, Not Specified
4.02 times more than expected
Kazakhstan
4 times more than expected

There are a relatively high number of people that were born in Belgium that hold Social Sciences degrees (4.19 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 (47,521 degree recipients).

Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Social Sciences field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Social Sciences majors need many skills, but most especially Reading Comprehension. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Social Sciences majors need more than the average amount of Programming, Science, and Mathematics.

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 Social Sciences 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 Programming is very distinctive for majors, but the Reading Comprehension, Writing, and Critical Thinking are the three most important skills for people in the field.

Radar Distribution

Bar Chart

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