English Degrees (2026 stats)
TL;DR
English maps to BLS occupations averaging about $100,260, with roughly 73,590 workers nationwide in those roles. About 33,304 bachelor's completions in IPEDS 2023; median program completion runs near 56%.
Key Statistics
English: what the data shows
Common questions about english degrees, answered from IPEDS, College Scorecard, BLS OEWS, and O*NET in this repository—not program marketing copy.
What is a english degree?
A English program is classified under NCES CIP 23.01 in the English Language and Literature, General field family (23.01).
Instructional content is defined in code 23.0101.
IPEDS counted 33,304 completions for this CIP in the survey year in our extract.
How long does it take to get a english degree?
Award levels reported to IPEDS for CIP 23.01 in our file:
- 3,463 Associate (7.8% of IPEDS total)—about two years of full-time study
- 33,304 Bachelor's (74.8% of IPEDS total)—typically four years
- 7,710 Master's (17.3% of IPEDS total)—one to two years beyond a bachelor's
- 48 Doctorate (0.1% of IPEDS total)—varies by program
Time to completion depends on enrollment intensity and transfer credits; figures above describe credential type, not calendar time for every student.
What do you learn in english?
O*NET skill ratings for occupations mapped to this major emphasize Instructing, Speaking, Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Learning Strategies, Writing, and related competencies. See the Skills section for the full list in our extract.
What degree do you need?
For Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language Instructors (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%). Bachelor's awards account for a majority of IPEDS completions for CIP 23.01, but occupation data show multiple pathways.
O*NET education distributions describe incumbent workers, not minimum legal or employer requirements.
What jobs can you get with a english degree?
Our degree→occupation mapping links English 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language Instructors | 36,260 | $59,950 |
| English Language and Literature Teachers, Postsecondary | 59,590 | $78,270 |
| Aircraft Mechanics and Service Technicians | 136,390 | $78,680 |
| Computer Hardware Engineers | 75,710 | $155,020 |
| Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters | 43,640 | $39,270 |
| Eligibility Interviewers, Government Programs | 156,260 | $51,500 |
See Careers & Jobs for mean wages and industry context.
Is a english degree worth it?
College Scorecard national medians for the English Language and Literature, General bachelor's program family: median debt $24,091, median earnings $48,590 four years after enrollment. Debt-to-earnings proxy: 0.81.
About 6.9% of graduates in this field family were not working and not enrolled one year after completion in Scorecard's national program medians.
Among schools reporting in our Scorecard extract, median published in-state tuition is $16,376 and median net price is $18,219.
We do not score "worth" on opinion—compare debt, earnings, wages for mapped occupations, and completion data above against your cost and career target.
Institutions
Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in English and the types of students that study this field.
Tuition Costs for Common Institutions
$16,376 Median In-State Public
$35,960 Median Out of State Private
Tuition costs for English majors are, on average, $16,376 for in-state public colleges, and $35,960 for out of state private colleges.
Tuition costs comparison for English programs.
Institutions awarding the most English degrees
| # | Institution | State | Completions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Southern New Hampshire University | NH | 1,548 |
| 2 | Chattahoochee Technical College | GA | 785 |
| 3 | Arizona State University Digital Immersion | AZ | 436 |
| 4 | University of Central Florida | FL | 405 |
| 5 | Liberty University | VA | 375 |
| 6 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | PA | 347 |
| 7 | Columbia University in the City of New York | NY | 338 |
| 8 | Florida State University | FL | 336 |
| 9 | Full Sail University | FL | 313 |
| 10 | California State University-Long Beach | CA | 309 |
IPEDS Completions (c2024_a), all award levels for this CIP in our extract.
Degrees Awarded Over Time
33,304 Total Degrees Awarded in 2023
This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in English from 2015 to 2023.
Historical trend of degrees awarded in English.
Top 5 Schools by Enrollment
| # | School | State | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Texas A&M University-College Station | TX | 59,099 |
| 2 | Ivy Tech Community College | IN | 54,926 |
| 3 | Purdue University-Main Campus | IN | 39,637 |
| 4 | Rutgers University-New Brunswick | NJ | 36,357 |
| 5 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | IL | 34,623 |
Schools with the largest enrollment offering English programs.
Top 5 Most Affordable Tuition
| # | School | State | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tohono O'odham Community College | AZ | $932 |
| 2 | Woodland Community College | CA | $1,124 |
| 3 | Imperial Valley College | CA | $1,126 |
| 4 | Yuba College | CA | $1,128 |
| 5 | Lassen Community College | CA | $1,144 |
Schools with the lowest tuition costs for English programs.
Top 5 Lowest Net Price
| # | School | State | Net Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | College of the Sequoias | CA | $29 |
| 2 | Coahoma Community College | MS | $560 |
| 3 | Reedley College | CA | $1,584 |
| 4 | Imperial Valley College | CA | $1,697 |
| 5 | Hartnell College | CA | $2,895 |
Schools with the lowest average net price for English programs.
Graduation Rates
55.81% Median Graduation Rate (150% of normal time)
56.10% Average Graduation Rate
1,377 Institutions Reporting
43.55% - 68.61% Interquartile Range
Graduation/completion rates for English programs across institutions.
Where students complete this major (IPEDS)
Bachelor's-level completions (IPEDS Completions, award level 5) summed by institution state. State is taken from IPEDS Directory (HD2023) for each reporting institution.
Geographic concentration
The largest number of reported bachelor's completions for English is in CA (3,775 completions). That state represents about 11.3% of U.S. bachelor's completions reported for this CIP in the IPEDS file we use.
Among states, the highest concentration relative to all bachelor's degrees awarded in-state is GU (1.85% of that state's bachelor's completions).
Top states by count of bachelor's completions for this CIP (IPEDS).
| State | Bachelor's completions (this CIP) | % of U.S. total (this CIP) | % of state's all bachelor's |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA | 3,775 | 11.3% | 0.84% |
| NY | 2,769 | 8.3% | 1.00% |
| TX | 1,945 | 5.8% | 0.66% |
| FL | 1,741 | 5.2% | 0.76% |
| PA | 1,564 | 4.7% | 0.92% |
| MA | 1,378 | 4.1% | 1.08% |
| VA | 1,338 | 4.0% | 1.09% |
| OH | 1,151 | 3.5% | 0.83% |
| IL | 1,090 | 3.3% | 0.79% |
| NC | 1,060 | 3.2% | 0.86% |
| NH | 1,000 | 3.0% | 1.58% |
| GA | 808 | 2.4% | 0.70% |
| AZ | 803 | 2.4% | 0.58% |
| MI | 778 | 2.3% | 0.68% |
| NJ | 754 | 2.3% | 0.87% |
| WA | 714 | 2.1% | 1.04% |
| TN | 650 | 1.9% | 0.88% |
| MN | 637 | 1.9% | 0.75% |
Degree Levels (IPEDS)
Completions reported to IPEDS for CIP 23.01 in the survey year used in our extract (44,525 total across levels below).
- 3,463 Associate (7.8% of IPEDS total)
- 33,304 Bachelor's (74.8% of IPEDS total)
- 7,710 Master's (17.3% of IPEDS total)
- 48 Doctorate (0.1% of IPEDS total)
Source: IPEDS Completions (c2024_a), summed by award level for this CIP.
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 $100,260. Figures are national OEWS estimates for the occupation—not earnings of English graduates alone.
Related occupations (BLS OEWS)
| Occupation | Mean annual wage | U.S. employment |
|---|---|---|
| Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language Instructors | $100,129 | 36,260 |
| English Language and Literature Teachers, Postsecondary | $145,212 | 59,590 |
| Aircraft Mechanics and Service Technicians | $88,062 | 136,390 |
| Computer Hardware Engineers | $188,333 | 75,710 |
| Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters | $53,312 | 43,640 |
| Eligibility Interviewers, Government Programs | $64,234 | 156,260 |
Open each occupation for full career profile charts and industry breakdowns on EDsmart Data.
Program outcomes (College Scorecard)
National medians across bachelor's programs in the English Language and Literature, General CIP family (149 programs reporting debt). Not specific to every English graduate.
- $24,091 median federal loan debt among completers
- $48,590 median earnings four years after enrollment (national program median)
- 0.81 debt-to-earnings ratio (Scorecard proxy)
- 6.9% of graduates not working and not enrolled one year out (program cohort)
Source: College Scorecard program-level outcomes aggregated by 4-digit CIP family.
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
$115,438 Average Wage in Workforce
The average salary for English majors is $115,438.
Average annual salaries of the most common occupations for English majors.
Occupations by Share
73,590 2023 Workforce
The number of English graduates in the workforce has been growing.
Various jobs filled by those with a major in English by share of the total number of graduates.
Return on Investment & Value
Debt and earnings fields below come from College Scorecard where present in our degree extract.
Financial value (extract)
$52,341 Median Annual Earnings (10 years after enrollment)
618.22% Return on Investment (10-year earnings vs 4-year cost)
Ten-year earnings in this extract exceed four years of median net price.
$72,876 Estimated Total Cost (4 years at median net price)
Financial value comparison for English degree.
Diversity
Demographic information for those who earn a degree in English in the United States.
Workforce Age
N/A Average Age in 2023
This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in English.
Age distribution for English degree holders in the workforce.
Gender Distribution
Counts below are bachelor's-level completions only (IPEDS Completions, award level 5).
33,304 Total Degrees Awarded
8,635 Male (25.93%)
24,669 Female (74.07%)
Gender distribution of English degree recipients.
Race and Ethnicity Distribution
Counts below are bachelor's-level completions only (IPEDS Completions, award level 5).
20,635 White (61.96%)
5,712 Hispanic or Latino (17.15%)
2,241 Black or African American (6.73%)
1,628 Two or More Races (4.89%)
1,566 Asian (4.70%)
Racial and ethnic distribution of English degree recipients.
Degrees Awarded
The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in English are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.
Distribution of degree types awarded in English.
Skills
Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the English field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Required Skills
English majors need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Active Listening, and Reading Comprehension.
Rating of how necessary various skills are for English 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 English majors.
About
Instructional content is defined in code 23.0101.
In 2023, 33,304 degrees were awarded across all undergraduate and graduate programs in English.
CIP Code
23.01 - English
What the data shows
At the program-family level, College Scorecard reports median debt of $24,091 for bachelor's completers and median earnings near $48,590, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.81. Those figures describe national program cohorts in this CIP family—not every individual English graduate.
Women earned 73.2% of 48,926 English completions in the IPEDS file used here.
Mapped BLS occupations show employment-weighted mean pay of about $100,260. The largest mapped role by headcount is Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language Instructors (36,260 U.S. jobs in OEWS).
Published tuition medians in College Scorecard land at $16,376 in-state at public colleges and $35,960 at private institutions for programs in this field.
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.