Education Degrees (2026 stats)
TL;DR
Education maps to BLS occupations averaging about $89,176, with roughly 107,930 workers nationwide in those roles. Median program completion runs near 58%; common paths include Teachers and Instructors, All Other and Area, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies Teachers, Postsecondary.
Key Statistics
Education: what the data shows
Common questions about education degrees, answered from IPEDS, College Scorecard, BLS OEWS, and O*NET in this repository—not program marketing copy.
What is a education degree?
A Education program is classified under NCES CIP 00.1202 in the 00.0012 field family (00.12).
Types of education degrees and related programs
Other NCES program codes in the 00.12 family with pages on EDsmart Data:
- Casino Operations and Services (CIP 00.1206)
- Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services (CIP 00.1204)
- Culinary Arts and Related Services (CIP 00.1205)
- Elementary Education (CIP 00.1202)
- Funeral Service and Mortuary Science (CIP 00.1203)
What do you learn in education?
O*NET skill ratings for occupations mapped to this major emphasize Reading Comprehension, Instructing, Speaking, Active Learning, Active Listening, Learning Strategies, and related competencies. See the Skills section for the full list in our extract.
What degree do you need?
For Teachers and Instructors, All Other (top mapped occupation), O*NET incumbent surveys in our career profile report these education credentials most often: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
O*NET education distributions describe incumbent workers, not minimum legal or employer requirements.
What jobs can you get with a education degree?
Our degree→occupation mapping links Education to the BLS roles below. Employment is U.S. OEWS; median wage is national May 2024 where published in our extract.
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Teachers and Instructors, All Other | 125,010 | $64,690 |
| Area, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies Teachers, Postsecondary | 11,430 | $84,290 |
| Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education | 114,410 | $61,430 |
| Anthropology and Archeology Teachers, Postsecondary | 5,260 | $95,770 |
| Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary | 97,890 | $80,190 |
| Child, Family, and School Social Workers | 382,960 | $58,570 |
See Careers & Jobs for mean wages and industry context.
Institutions
Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Education and the types of students that study this field.
Degrees Awarded Over Time
N/A Total Degrees Awarded in 2023
This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Education from 2015 to 2023.
Historical trend of degrees awarded in Education.
Top 5 Schools by Enrollment
| # | School | State | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gavilan College | CA | 4,410 |
Schools with the largest enrollment offering Education programs.
Top 5 Most Affordable Tuition
| # | School | State | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gavilan College | CA | $1,506 |
Schools with the lowest tuition costs for Education programs.
Top 5 Lowest Net Price
| # | School | State | Net Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gavilan College | CA | $2,244 |
Schools with the lowest average net price for Education programs.
Graduation Rates
57.53% Median Graduation Rate (150% of normal time)
57.13% Average Graduation Rate
109 Institutions Reporting
45.45% - 70.63% Interquartile Range
Graduation/completion rates for Education programs across institutions.
Related specializations
Other NCES program codes in the 00.12 CIP family with dedicated pages on EDsmart Data.
- Casino Operations and Services CIP 00.1206
- Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services CIP 00.1204
- Culinary Arts and Related Services CIP 00.1205
- Elementary Education CIP 00.1202
- Funeral Service and Mortuary Science CIP 00.1203
Careers & Jobs
Occupations linked to this major in our degree→career mapping, with wages and employment from processed BLS career profiles in this repo.
Across these BLS occupations, employment-weighted mean pay is about $89,176. Figures are national OEWS estimates for the occupation—not earnings of Education graduates alone.
Related occupations (BLS OEWS)
| Occupation | Mean annual wage | U.S. employment |
|---|---|---|
| Teachers and Instructors, All Other | $92,692 | 125,010 |
| Area, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies Teachers, Postsecondary | $129,630 | 11,430 |
| Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education | $91,347 | 114,410 |
| Anthropology and Archeology Teachers, Postsecondary | $126,897 | 5,260 |
| Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary | $130,318 | 97,890 |
| Child, Family, and School Social Workers | $75,138 | 382,960 |
Open each occupation for full career profile charts and industry breakdowns on EDsmart Data.
Employment
Wages and industry mix below use BLS OEWS data for occupations linked to this major in our mapping—not a graduate earnings survey.
Yearly Income for Common Jobs
$87,722 Average Wage in Workforce
The average salary for Education majors is $87,722.
Average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Education majors.
Occupations by Share
107,930 2023 Workforce
The number of Education graduates in the workforce has been growing.
Various jobs filled by those with a major in Education by share of the total number of graduates.
Diversity
Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Education in the United States.
Workforce Age
N/A Average Age in 2023
This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Education.
Age distribution for Education degree holders in the workforce.
Gender Distribution
Gender distribution data is not available for this degree program.
Gender distribution of Education degree recipients.
Race and Ethnicity Distribution
Race and ethnicity distribution data is not available for this degree program.
Racial and ethnic distribution of Education degree recipients.
Degrees Awarded
The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Education are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.
Distribution of degree types awarded in Education.
Skills
Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Education field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Required Skills
Education majors need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Active Listening, and Reading Comprehension.
Rating of how necessary various skills are for Education majors.
Skills Bar Chart
This bar chart shows the same information as the radar chart, displaying the importance of each skill.
Skill importance ratings for Education majors.
About
Education
In 2023, N/A degrees were awarded across all undergraduate and graduate programs in Education.
CIP Code
00.1202 - Education
What the data shows
Mapped BLS occupations show employment-weighted mean pay of about $89,176. The largest mapped role by headcount is Teachers and Instructors, All Other (125,010 U.S. jobs in OEWS).
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard dataset, IPEDS completion data, and Bureau of Labor Statistics employment data.
All financial figures are adjusted for inflation and represent the most recent available data. Employment and wage data are from the most recent Census Bureau ACS PUMS estimates.