Lactation Consultant Degrees (2026 stats)
TL;DR
Lactation Consultant — headline outcomes are in the stats below. Median in-state published tuition is about $4,718.
Key Statistics
Lactation Consultant: what the data shows
Common questions about lactation consultant degrees, answered from IPEDS, College Scorecard, BLS OEWS, and O*NET in this repository—not program marketing copy.
What is a lactation consultant degree?
A Lactation Consultant program is classified under NCES CIP 51.0815 in the Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services field family (51.08).
A program that prepares individuals to provide lactation management services and breastfeeding support to women, and to work as a Lactation Consultant in a variety of clinical settings. Includes instruction in anatomy and physiology of lactation, nutrition, breastfeeding techniques and technologies, common concerns and solutions, management of special situations, breastfeeding instruction, professional and legal concerns, and advocacy
Types of lactation consultant degrees and related programs
Other NCES program codes in the 51.08 family with pages on EDsmart Data:
- Anesthesiologist Assistant (CIP 51.0809)
- Chiropractic Technician/Assistant (CIP 51.0813)
- Clinical/Medical Laboratory Assistant (CIP 51.0802)
- Emergency Care Attendant (EMT Ambulance) (CIP 51.0810)
- Medical/Clinical Assistant (CIP 51.0801)
- Occupational Therapist Assistant (CIP 51.0803)
- Pathology/Pathologist Assistant (CIP 51.0811)
- Pharmacy Technician/Assistant (CIP 51.0805)
- Physical Therapy Assistant (CIP 51.0806)
- Radiologist Assistant (CIP 51.0814)
- Respiratory Therapy Technician/Assistant (CIP 51.0812)
- Speech-Language Pathology Assistant (CIP 51.0816)
Is a lactation consultant degree worth it?
College Scorecard national medians for the Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services bachelor's program family: median debt $32,031, median earnings $68,559 four years after enrollment. Debt-to-earnings proxy: 0.97.
About 4.5% 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 $4,718 and median net price is $11,972.
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 Lactation Consultant and the types of students that study this field.
Tuition Costs for Common Institutions
$4,718 Median In-State Public
$16,346 Median Out of State Private
Tuition costs for Lactation Consultant majors are, on average, $4,718 for in-state public colleges, and $16,346 for out of state private colleges.
Tuition costs comparison for Lactation Consultant programs.
Degrees Awarded Over Time
100,000 Total Degrees Awarded in 2023
This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Lactation Consultant from 2015 to 2023.
Historical trend of degrees awarded in Lactation Consultant.
Top 5 Schools by Enrollment
| # | School | State | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Phoenix-Arizona | AZ | 85,991 |
| 2 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | AZ | 64,674 |
| 3 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | AZ | 64,674 |
| 4 | Ivy Tech Community College | IN | 58,267 |
| 5 | Ivy Tech Community College | IN | 58,267 |
Schools with the largest enrollment offering Lactation Consultant programs.
Top 5 Most Affordable Tuition
| # | School | State | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barstow Community College | CA | $1,104 |
| 2 | Antelope Valley Community College District | CA | $1,124 |
| 3 | Antelope Valley Community College District | CA | $1,124 |
| 4 | Lake Tahoe Community College | CA | $1,131 |
| 5 | Lake Tahoe Community College | CA | $1,131 |
Schools with the lowest tuition costs for Lactation Consultant programs.
Top 5 Lowest Net Price
| # | School | State | Net Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Canada College | CA | $32 |
| 2 | Canada College | CA | $32 |
| 3 | Infinity College | LA | $230 |
| 4 | College of the Sequoias | CA | $480 |
| 5 | College of the Sequoias | CA | $480 |
Schools with the lowest average net price for Lactation Consultant programs.
Graduation Rates
Graduation rate data is not available for this degree program.
Graduation/completion rates for Lactation Consultant programs across institutions.
Related specializations
Other NCES program codes in the 51.08 CIP family with dedicated pages on EDsmart Data.
- Anesthesiologist Assistant CIP 51.0809
- Chiropractic Technician/Assistant CIP 51.0813
- Clinical/Medical Laboratory Assistant CIP 51.0802
- Emergency Care Attendant (EMT Ambulance) CIP 51.0810
- Medical/Clinical Assistant CIP 51.0801
- Occupational Therapist Assistant CIP 51.0803
- Pathology/Pathologist Assistant CIP 51.0811
- Pharmacy Technician/Assistant CIP 51.0805
- Physical Therapy Assistant CIP 51.0806
- Radiologist Assistant CIP 51.0814
- Respiratory Therapy Technician/Assistant CIP 51.0812
- Speech-Language Pathology Assistant CIP 51.0816
Program outcomes (College Scorecard)
National medians across bachelor's programs in the Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services CIP family (6 programs reporting debt). Not specific to every Lactation Consultant graduate.
- $32,031 median federal loan debt among completers
- $68,559 median earnings four years after enrollment (national program median)
- 0.97 debt-to-earnings ratio (Scorecard proxy)
- 4.5% 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
$N/A Average Wage in Workforce
The average salary for Lactation Consultant majors is $N/A.
Average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Lactation Consultant majors.
Occupations by Share
N/A 2023 Workforce
The number of Lactation Consultant graduates in the workforce has been growing.
Various jobs filled by those with a major in Lactation Consultant by share of the total number of graduates.
Diversity
Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Lactation Consultant in the United States.
Workforce Age
N/A Average Age in 2023
This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Lactation Consultant.
Age distribution for Lactation Consultant degree holders in the workforce.
Gender Distribution
37 Total Degrees Awarded
37 Female (100.00%)
Gender distribution of Lactation Consultant degree recipients.
Race and Ethnicity Distribution
22 White (59.46%)
9 Black or African American (24.32%)
3 Two or More Races (8.11%)
2 Hispanic or Latino (5.41%)
1 Asian (2.70%)
Racial and ethnic distribution of Lactation Consultant degree recipients.
Degrees Awarded
The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Lactation Consultant are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.
Distribution of degree types awarded in Lactation Consultant.
Skills
Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Lactation Consultant field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Required Skills
Lactation Consultant majors need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Active Listening, and Reading Comprehension.
Rating of how necessary various skills are for Lactation Consultant 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 Lactation Consultant majors.
About
A program that prepares individuals to provide lactation management services and breastfeeding support to women, and to work as a Lactation Consultant in a variety of clinical settings. Includes instruction in anatomy and physiology of lactation, nutrition, breastfeeding techniques and technologies, common concerns and solutions, management of special situations, breastfeeding instruction, professional and legal concerns, and advocacy
In 2023, 100,000 degrees were awarded across all undergraduate and graduate programs in Lactation Consultant.
CIP Code
51.0815 - Lactation Consultant
What the data shows
At the program-family level, College Scorecard reports median debt of $32,031 for bachelor's completers and median earnings near $68,559, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.97. Those figures describe national program cohorts in this CIP family—not every individual Lactation Consultant graduate.
Women earned 100.0% of 37 Lactation Consultant completions in the IPEDS file used here.
Published tuition medians in College Scorecard land at $4,718 in-state at public colleges and $16,346 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.